Publication Date: May 2011

Classification: YA Novel

Challenge: Outdo Yourself

Source: Author for Review

Summary from Barnes and Noble:

When Hollywood It Boy, Reid Alexander, arrives on location to shoot his next movie, his goals are the same as always—film another blockbuster hit and enjoy his celebrity status to the fullest while doing so. His costar is a virtual unknown with whom he had blazing hot chemistry during her auditions. The universe is lining up nicely to grant whatever he wants, as usual, until he’s confronted with unexpected obstacles on location like a bitter ex-girlfriend and a rival for the first girl to spark his genuine interest in years.

Emma Pierce just got her big break after more than a decade of filming commercials for grape juice, department stores and tampons, and more recently, bit parts in made-for-TV movies. Nailing the lead role in a wide-release film sent her agent, father and stepmother into raptures, and should have done the same for her. The Problem? Emma is experiencing a building desire to be normal, and starring in a silly, modernized adaptation of one of her favorite novels—opposite the very hot Reid Alexander—isn’t going to advance that aspiration.

Graham Douglas doesn’t fear playing the part of a nerdy dimwit; when it comes to choosing film roles, if it pays, he’ll do it. Besides, his friend Brooke Cameron snatched up the role of the bitchy hot girl and could use his help as a buffer, because her ex is the star. Graham has no problem keeping a handle on the situation, until he finds himself attracted to Reid’s costar, Emma, the girl Reid is pursuing full-throttle with his standard arsenal of charm, good looks and arrogance.

Since the summary of this book does such a great job I’m just going to say directly what I think. This book is actually told in opposite view points, on one hand the readers see exactly what Reid is thinking and on the other is Emma’s point of view. This makes the story interesting in the beginning because I for one always love to see things from the guy’s point of view. It is not often in YA books to actually be in the head of the main male character so I did enjoy this aspect of the storyline. So overall the beginning of the storyline really drew in my attention because I wanted to learn more about Emma and a possible romance that she would have with her hot co-star Reid.

In the middle of the book is where I really started to have my doubts about where the whole concept of the storyline was going. It felt like everything was slowly falling apart in the characters’ lives and there was an all time low feeling. To add to the misery that the characters were putting themselves through I really was starting to hate the fact that half the book was in Reid’s perspective. While in the mind set of Reid all the reader ever really gets in the middle section of the book is a stereotypical male attitude, plainly put, he wants to sleep with every girl in sight. This means he has stopped taking Emma’s feelings to consideration and he is just the type of guy that girls always plan on avoiding. While all of the drama is happening with Reid, Emma is having her own drama with her best friend Emily and the fact that Graham has kissed her and seems more than friend material. Yes my fellow lovers of YA romance, the love triangle strikes yet again. However, like most love triangles I only really liked one male character of the two leading males, I’m sure you can guess who that is since I’m not a fan of Reid’s attitude.

While the middle really started to sag for me the ending is what really pulled the whole experience up. I really started to enjoy some of the lessons that the teens in the story were learning. Valuable lessons such as figuring out what exactly you want in a guy that you are dating, who is right for you, and major life choices. Sometimes even if you feel something for a guy that doesn’t mean he is the right guy for you. I felt that the teens were making some of the mistakes that I made when I was in high school and I learned a great deal from my mistakes so I was very happy to see the characters struggle and yet find themselves in all of the drama that was going on. In high school many things make it seem like the world is going to end and sometimes you don’t realize until you are older that the world isn’t ending over every little piece of drama that goes on.

Overall, I might have had my ups and downs with Between the Lines but I felt the story stayed true to teenagers. Every teen will make mistakes and learn great life lessons along the way. As every adult knows, sometimes you have to go through years of mistakes in order to change to become a better person by learning from those mistakes. Plus I really did like Graham, (maybe this was also because he was in the 20-21 age range and that is my age so I felt connected with his calm approach to life amoungst the drama of the teens) and Emma. Overall if you want to remember some of the times you had in high school or if you are still in high school, looking for a contemporary romance I suggest you read this one, it gets 4 hearts from me.

Title: Luminous

Author: Dawn Metcalf
Publisher: Dutton Childrens Books

Publication Date: June 30th, 2011 

Classification: YA Novel

Summary from Barnes and Noble:

As reality slips and time stands still, Consuela finds herself thrust into the world of the Flow. Removed from all she loves into this shifting world overlapping our own, Consuela quickly discovers she has the power to step out of her earthly skin and cloak herself in new ones-skins made from the world around her, crafted from water, fire, air. She is joined by other teens with extraordinary abilities, bound together to safeguard a world they can affect, but where they no longer belong.
When murder threatens to undo the Flow, the Watcher charges Consuela and elusive, attractive V to stop the killer. But the psychopath who threatens her new world may also hold the only key to Consuela’s way home.

My Thoughts:

Title: Wildefire

Author: Karsten Knight

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Publication Date: July 2011

Classification: YA Novel

Challenge: Outdo Yourself

Summary from Barnes and Noble:

Every flame begins with a spark.
Ashline Wilde is having a rough sophomore year. She’s struggling to find her place as the only Polynesian girl in school, her boyfriend just cheated on her, and now her runaway sister, Eve, has decided to barge back into her life. When Eve’s violent behavior escalates and she does the unthinkable, Ash transfers to a remote private school nestled in California’s redwoods, hoping to put the tragedy behind her. But her fresh start at Blackwood Academy doesn’t go as planned. Just as Ash is beginning to enjoy the perks of her new school—being captain of the tennis team, a steamy romance with a hot, local park ranger—Ash discovers that a group of gods and goddesses have mysteriously enrolled at Blackwood…and she’s one of them. To make matters worse, Eve has resurfaced to haunt Ash, and she’s got some strange abilities of her own. With a war between the gods looming over campus, Ash must master the new fire smoldering within before she clashes with her sister one more time… And when warm and cold fronts collide, there’s guaranteed to be a storm.

My Thoughts:
Most of this review probably will not make a whole lot of sense because I just feel so many different things for this book. First off the beginning starts off with a big bang, full of action. Then all of a sudden our leading character is in a different place 8 months later and new characters and pieces of the story get slowly added. I do mean slowly added with very little plot actually happening in the whole beginning of this book. There are a few pieces of action here and there and of course we find out about the Gods and Godesses part of the story but not much is every really explained during this whole novel. Let me paint a picture for you….

You know those story webs that you made when you were little and first learning how to write? It has the main idea in the middle and everything such as the setting, characters, and plot branch off of that one idea. Well this story felt like all of the basic elements were there, good characters with a kick-ass heroine, a love interest early on, the paranormal aspect and the mythology, in a middle of no where town where anything can happen. Sounds great doesn’t it, however if you pay close attention you will see I talked about the characters, the love interest, and the setting but, the plot is missing from what I described!!! How can you have a book with no plot? Very carefully is what I have learned, and Wildefire never really has a full plot until the very end. It has pieces and glimpse of plot lines that will never come together to make sense until the end of the story. Trust me I almost gave up on this book halfway through because I kept sitting back and waiting and waiting to see where the storyline was going to go.

Even with everything I just said about the beginning and middle of the book it was really the end of this book that threw me for the biggest loop yet. The ending actually had me crying yet getting excited and giddy about what was happening! It was like everything in a way paid off because the ending was really something, and yet in the back of my mind I still know that getting there was a rough road with very little plot and in fact a lot of the plot is still unasnwered. It was like this book was one giant opening to another book (I hope there is a sequel to this book because now I’m sucked into this world and I have NEED to know more!).

Overall, I honestly don’t even know what to say, I had a love and hate relationship with this book yet I can’t deny that it left me emotionally involved. I love books that get me emotionally involved and this hyped up about the storyline yet I had some major issues in how the book got to the amazing ending. I’m at war with myself on how I feel about this book. I know that while reading the beginning I almost gave up, does an amazing ending fix all the bumps and bruises experienced in the beginning of the book? Well I’ll let you be the judge, pick up Wildefire when it comes out in July and please I’m begging you come back and tell me what you think because I’m still at odds with myself on this particular book. Overall I’m not giving this book a heart rating because anytime I even think about the story I hover anywhere between 3-5 hearts on Wildefire.