Review: Anne & Henry

Anne & Henry by Dawn Ius
Grade: D
Release date: September 1, 2015
An e-galley was provided by Simon Pulse via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.
Summary: In this wonderfully creative retelling of the infamous—and torrid—love affair between Anne Boleyn and King Henry VIII, history collides with the present when a sizzling romance ignites in a modern-day high school.
Henry Tudor’s life has been mapped out since the day he was born: student body president, valedictorian, Harvard Law School, and a stunning political career just like his father’s. But ever since the death of his brother, the pressure for Henry to be perfect has doubled. And now he’s trapped: forbidden from pursuing a life as an artist or dating any girl who isn’t Tudor-approved.

Then Anne Boleyn crashes into his life.

Wild, brash, and outspoken, Anne is everything Henry isn’t allowed to be—or want. But soon Anne is all he can think about. His mother, his friends, and even his girlfriend warn him away, but his desire for Anne consumes him.

Henry is willing to do anything to be with her, but once they’re together, will their romance destroy them both?

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: So I have this thing for history. Books that retell or play with real events in history fascinate me. Anne & Henry caught my eye for this reason. As stated in the summary, it's a retelling of the story of Henry VIII of England and Anne Boleyn. I knew this could either be really good or a trainwreck. And unfortunately, it's kind of the latter. This is one of those car wrecks you just can't look away from. Anne and Henry fall passionately "in love" in only a few weeks' time. Henry is quickly already seeing her as a part of his future. But! Everyone in town is against the relationship from the start. Anne comes off as too fictional - her beauty is natural and unattainable (it's all Henry can talk about), plus she's sexy. She also has a motorcycle and her own mother doesn't seem to trust her. 

(except Anne was more a nightmare dressed like a nightmare)

Anne was fairly open about her past with Henry, which I enjoyed. Most YA protagonists hide their skeletons and they often show up when everything is about to hit the fan. But everyone seemed to believe the rumors about Anne, which was annoying and ridiculous. Was there no one in Medina who was willing to give a new girl the benefit of the doubt?

It was weird to have Catherine still around after the break-up. And of course she was automatically the jealous girlfriend.

And another character that felt a bit shoehorned in was Sam. I couldn't figure out what her part in the whole story was. She could've been really cool, but she didn't fit.
Then there's Henry. He was such a typical YA hero that didn't want what his family wanted for him, but he didn't really get any character development. It was mentioned, I believe, that he was interested in art and/or acting, but that was never really pursued. And of course, Anne starts to "corrupt" him. It was nice, for once, that the guy wasn't doing the corrupting but it was still annoying. At least it gives me an opportunity to use this gif.

(longer than a weekend, though)

The only thing I really liked? The ending. It was a great twist on reality and very fitting.

As for the ugly, there was a lot of lusting, some hot and heavy makeout sessions, and more uses of the f-word and s-word than I could keep track of.

The Verdict: Probably one you should pass on. But I couldn't pass up these gifs...

Buy: Read Between the Lynes  Barnes & Noble

Will I be adding this book to my library?: No.

Random Friday: Fall 2015 Reads

Want to participate in Random Fridays? Just do the following: 

• Include the above image in your post and link back to my post.
• Blog about this week's topic.
• Add the link to your Random Friday at the bottom of this post.

There are a ton of fall releases I'm excited for! Here are ten of them.

1. Ash & Bramble by Sarah Prineas

2. Walk on Earth a Stranger by Rae Carson

3. This Monstrous Thing by Mackenzi Lee

4. Juniors by Kaui Hart Hemmings

5. The Rose Society by Marie Lu

6. Cinderella's Shoes by Shonna Slayton

7. My Secret to Tell by Natalie D. Richards

8. The Scorpion Rules by Erin Bow

9. Future Perfect by Jen Larsen

10. Dark Tide by Jennifer Donnelly

What are you hoping to read this fall? Or, what fall releases are you looking forward to?

My Beautiful Bookshelves

The organization of my bookcases has gone through a lot of changes. I used to have my main bookcases sorted first by genre and then by author's last name. Eventually, I had to switch this. My main bookcases were sorted entirely by author's last name. Those shelves were all YA; I kept my middle grade, ARCs, classics, and Christian fiction separate.

We're living in a new house now, and I have a new (gorgeous, super tall) bookcase that made organizing my books a bit easier. My tall black bookcase...

...holds my Heather Vogel Frederick, Robin Jones Gunn, and Rick Riordan collections with two shelves of ARCs in the middle. I'm trying to trade a lot of ARCs right now (that tall stack on the third shelf) because I'm out of room for all of them. If I get any more books by Robin Jones Gunn (which I will), they're not all going to fit nicely. I'm not happy about that.

Here's my new bookcase.

It goes almost all the way to the ceiling. I don't entirely like how the shelves go on it though. There are two anchor shelves, but they make it so the rest aren't evenly spaced and there had to be those two short shelves and the bottom one is super tall, which means my books can't all fit there.

I'm using the short ones to display knick-knacks, my foreign editions, and my copies of Shakespearean plays.

(Queen Elsa and Lady Sif: guardians of the bookcase)

As I said, all my books (in my YA collection) can't fit on the tall bookcase. So they spread onto the small one I brought from the old house.

There's still space on it, but I'm saving that for books left in my Kentucky storage unit and for the ones I'll continue to buy. Bottom shelf is middle grade (with my Anne of Green Gables copies in there, too). Those may eventually have to move because my YA collection will inevitably spread to that shelf. 

Hope you enjoyed this look at my personal library!

Top Ten Tuesday: Auto-Buy Authors

Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

I actually kind of struggled with this week's topic. I have auto-buy authors, but as I thought about it, I wasn't sure I had ten. This list might be pushing it, because if one of these authors writes a book outside the genres I read, I probably won't read it. But for the most part, I think I'll buy anything these authors write.

1. Emery Lord (author of Open Road Smmer and The Start of Me and You)

It's no surprise Emery tops my list. Her debut and sophomore novels have won me over. I was so confident about loving Open Road Summer that I bought it before reading it (in ARC or library form). I've never regretted that decision.

2. Marissa Meyer (author of The Lunar Chronicles)

My fave sci-fi series. I think they've cemented my love for Marissa's writing.

3. Kasie West (author of the Pivot Point duology, The Distance Between Us, On the Fence, and The Fill-In Boyfriend)

Kasie can write amazing contemporary romance and paranormal/sci-fi. 

4. Heather Vogel Frederick (author of The Mother-Daughter Book Club series and Absolutely Truly)

I love the MDBC series so I'd say I'll pretty much buy anything Heather writes.

5. Anne Blankman (author of the Prisoner of Night and Fog duology)

If Anne continues to write historical fiction, she'll be a permanent fixture on my auto-buy list. Historical fic is definitely her strength, and she's a kindred history geek spirit.

6. Elizabeth Eulberg (author of The Lonely Hearts Club, Better off Friends, and more)

One of the queens of contemporary YA. I've met Elizabeth, and she's so personable and friendly so I couldn't imagine never buying one of her books.

7. Tamara Ireland Stone (author of the Time Between Us duology and Every Last Word)

Her writing is so lyrical. I will always buy Tamara's books, as long as it's not horror or the type of sci-fi that doesn't interest me.

8. Ally Carter (author of the Gallagher Girls series, the Heist Society trilogy, and the Embassy Row trilogy)

I can't forget Ally! She's written some of my favorite YA books EVER. Totally auto-buy at this point.

9. Jennifer E. Smith (author of The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight, You Are Here, The Geography of You and Me, and more)

I consider Jennifer one of the contemporary romance queens. She writes such realistic stories, and I love them.

10. Jennifer Lynn Barnes (author of The Naturals series and The Fixer)

I haven't read her early stuff, but I love The Naturals and The Fixer so if Jenn continues to write books like them, I'll buy them immediately.

Who are your auto-buy authors?

Interview with Erin Fitzsimmons, Associate Art Director at HarperCollins

So if you're like me, you might wonder what various jobs in the publishing industry entail. A blogger friend, Shae, recently talked about being a literary scout intern, which is a job I never knew existed. 

I have a friend, though, who recently asked me about illustrating children's books. She loves to read, and draw, and paint, and take photos. I mentioned cover design to her, but I personally didn't know what all of that would entail. So I went directly to a cover designer I knew of: Erin Fitzsimmons. She's an associate art director at HarperCollins, and I knew if I could get an interview with her, I could get some of Hannah's questions answered - as well as help out other aspiring cover designers. So without further ado, my interview with Erin Fitzsimmons.

Emma: I know you get this question pretty much every time, but could you explain to my readers what an associate art director does?

Erin: Absolutely! I think it does vary from company to company, so I can tell you what I do in my role at HarperCollins. My role as Associate Art Director consists primarily of managing the design and art direction of new book covers and interiors for one editorial team. For me, this means working on mostly middle grade and YA titles, with the occasional picture book and graphic novel!

I have an incredibly talented designer who works with me, and she designs about half of the titles on the list. The other half of the titles I might design myself or I hire outside freelancers to work on. When working with my designer, my role is to help her concept for new titles, or to encourage her along as she develops concepts on her own. Depending on the complexity and level of the project, I might be more involved or less involved with each aspect of the design process. I’m horrible at editing my own work, but I love seeing her ideas and helping her narrow down to the strongest covers!

The great thing about my role is I do still get to design some titles, although significantly fewer than I was before I took on this title. Designing is my passion, but there is something very fun about art directing as well. I love finding new artists, and working with them on a concept I’ve sketched up, or giving them a brief to come up with concepts on their own. There’s nothing more rewarding for an art director than taking one concept from sketch to final, and seeing your vision executed with perfection.

A very large part of any art director’s job is being the liaison between the publisher, the author and agent, and the artist. We always strive to create a cover that makes all parties happy, and sometimes that can be more complicated, but it’s our job to find the best solution and continually push the design to be its best.

Emma: What does your average work day look like?

Erin: Usually it’s a mix between meetings with editors to talk about new covers, actually designing covers or jackets, emailing with artists, and circulating materials for books in progress. Every day includes a lot of emailing artists.  Some days are heavier on meetings, or we have more deadlines coming up, so I need to focus on my inbox. I try and keep a balance, or else I can get overwhelmed and can fall behind in one area. I love meeting with editors to share cover concepts or to show them final art, but the absolute best days are the days that I get to design!

Emma: What skills do you think an aspiring cover designer should have or learn?

Erin: This might sound strange but...time management! Work ethic, creativity, and technical skills are all incredibly important, but you’ll need technical skills to get any job in design, and I’m not quite sure you can learn to have a work ethic or to be creative. I think those come naturally. But I do think you can learn to manage your time, and I think if you can do that, you will find working in any design environment much easier, and you’ll be able to manage the day-to-day tasks (emails, circulating jackets and interiors, etc.) in an efficient manner which will leave you more time to actually design! (And that’s all we want to do really - design.)

Emma: Is there anything important they should study in college?

Erin: I didn’t go to design school, so I’m not even sure what you’re supposed to study to become a cover designer! The classes that helped me the most were Photoshop classes. Since I knew Photoshop, I was able to teach myself InDesign and Illustrator (though I suppose it’d be much easier if you took actual classes in those!)

And, again it may sound odd, but I read a ton in college, and was constantly analyzing and writing about readings. As cover designers, we are constantly reading manuscripts, so I’d say reading comprehension is a great skill to have if you want to work in book cover design!

Emma: How do you choose what to put on a cover? Are there specific scenes or detail you make note of if you're able to read the book?

Erin: In many ways, the cover imagery kind of chooses itself. I do try to take notes and sketch while I’m reading. Sometimes an image jumps out to me immediately, and I can’t get it out of my head while I’m reading. This happened recently on Challenger Deep. I had this image of Caden underwater, with a tangled, messy line, in my head from the very beginning. It was very cool to see my idea brought to life by the extremely talented artist Andy Bridge.

If I don’t have a specific idea while I’m reading, I like to make lists of words that come to mind when I think of the book, such as general themes, or specific elements. I use this list to begin researching imagery and artists, and then I see where that research takes me. The process becomes more exploratory then, and we can go through many iterations of a cover before we settle on the final image.

Emma: How much input do outside influences have on a cover? (i.e., the author, the editor, marketing teams, and so forth)

Erin: Quite a bit. We want everyone to be happy and excited with the cover direction, so sometimes we need to make changes based on feedback from different teams. We work most closely with the editors, so they are very involved from the beginning. But as we get closer to a final cover, we share with the sales and marketing teams, and the author. For the most part, everyone is usually on happy and board, maybe with minor changes! But there are the occasional titles where they see something we didn’t, or they had a different vision for the cover. So we adapt and come up with a better solution!

Emma: Is there anything you see becoming a cover trend in the very near future?

Erin: Gosh, I wish I knew! Do you see something? Do tell, do tell! ;)

I do think we’ve reached the peak of the illustrated/hand-lettered cover trend, so the market is definitely ripe for a new trend. It’s anybody’s guess! I can’t tell if I’d love or hate to be the one to set the trend. I think I’d love it? Who knows!

Emma: Do you have a preference for which genre of YA fiction you design for? (Contemporary, fantasy, futuristic, etc.)

Erin: I thought I used to, but now I really enjoy working on a variety of genres! That’s kind of the best part about being an art director -- I assign the titles so I can give myself a nice variety to work on. It can get monotonous (and difficult) to design for the same type of book over and over again, so it’s great to mix it up.

Emma: What is one thing more people should know about cover designers/cover design?

Erin: We’re huge nerds. And we love books as much as you do!!!

Thanks again, Erin! 

If you want to check out more of Erin's work, here are the links to her website and her Twitter.

Website

Twitter

Review: Legacy of Kings

Legacy of Kings by Eleanor Herman
Grade: B-
Release date: August 25, 2015
An ARC was provided by Harlequin Teen in exchange for an honest review.
Summary: Imagine a time when the gods turn a blind eye to the agony of men, when the last of the hellions roam the plains and evil stirs beyond the edges of the map. A time when cities burn, and in their ashes, empires rise.

Alexander, Macedonia’s sixteen-year-old heir, is on the brink of discovering his fated role in conquering the known world but finds himself drawn to newcomer Katerina, who must navigate the dark secrets of court life while hiding her own mission: kill the Queen. But Kat’s first love, Jacob, will go to unthinkable lengths to win her, even if it means competing for her heart with Hephaestion, a murderer sheltered by the prince. And far across the sea, Zofia, a Persian princess and Alexander’s unmet fiancée, wants to alter her destiny by seeking the famed and deadly Spirit Eaters.

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: I have never seen or read Game of Thrones. But from what I know from Twitter and Tumblr, I could see this being a slightly less violent, slightly more appropriate version. Legacy of Kings's world is based in reality with magic and fictional characters thrown in. A young Alexander the Great is one of the lead characters, along with his best friend Heph, and his half-sister Cynane. Katerina, Jacob, and Zofia (all mentioned in the synopsis) also narrate. It got a bit jumbled trying to follow all of their histories and motives. I would've liked a little more time with certain characters (mainly Zofia) just because I don't feel like I got to know them very well. There was a lot of moments when the plot wasn't really moving, and a lot happened at the end, namely with Kat. The plotline with Jacob and the lords was a bit confusing, so I think those were some of the chapters that needed clarity and less space between them. Jacob, Kat, and Heph were probably my least favorite chapters, although Kat was still fascinating so I didn't dread her chapters. But I definitely wanted more of Zofia and Cynane!
I appreciated reading historical fiction of a time that many YA books are not set in. I studied ancient history a lot in middle and high school and Alexander the Great is such a fascinating player on the stage of history. I'll be interested to see where this series goes, especially because the plot felt like it was cut off abruptly in some places so readers would want more. Trust me - I would've wanted more, even with more loose ends wrapped up. 
Lots of violence, some dark magic, and sexual content (I think it was fade to black but still).

The Verdict: Great concept, just too many characters and not enough time with some of them.

Buy: Read Between the Lynes  Barnes & Noble

Will I be adding this book to my library?: Maybe

Review: Vengeance Road

Vengeance Road by Erin Bowman
Grade: B
Release date: September 1, 2015
An e-galley was provided by HMH Books for Young Readers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Summary: When Kate Thompson’s father is killed by the notorious Rose Riders for a mysterious journal that reveals the secret location of a gold mine, the eighteen-year-old disguises herself as a boy and takes to the gritty plains looking for answers and justice. What she finds are devious strangers, dust storms, and a pair of brothers who refuse to quit riding in her shadow. But as Kate gets closer to the secrets about her family, she gets closer to the truth about herself and must decide if there's room for love in a heart so full of hate. In the spirit of True Grit, the cutthroat days of the Wild West come to life for a new generation.   

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: 2015 is the year of Westerns, between Under a Painted Sky and Rae Carson's upcoming Walk on Earth a Stranger and now Erin Bowman's Vengeance Road. This one could easily be a movie of the Western genre, with its shoot-outs, twists, and dialogue. The entire book is narrated in a rough dialect that I struggled with (as a grammar nerd) and didn't enjoy. I was able to ignore it after awhile, much like I could with Scarlet's dialect in A.C. Gaughen's retelling of Robin Hood.
Kate Thompson is spunky and unapologetic and authentic. Nothing about her felt forced. Will and Jesse were great, too. Lil, the Apache girl, felt a bit stereotypical at times but she gained some depth after a big incident (that I will not spoil, so don't ask).
I'm not quite sure what I was expecting to happen in this book, but Vengeance Road definitely took me by surprise. I hate "journey" books (most end up being pretty boring), but this one wasn't about the journey or focused only on the trip. Enough happened at various intervals to keep me entertained and enjoying the plot. There is a plot twist about 85% in that I didn't like. It worked in some ways, but I felt pretty meh about it.
The romance was pretty much expected, but it was still pretty swoony. A lot of it was what I wanted from the romance in Under a Painted Sky (meaning it develops a little sooner and there are plenty of swoonworthy kisses).
There's some foul language and a lot of violence.

The Verdict: So great! I wasn't expecting to love such a straight Western, but I did! So if you enjoy historical fiction, this is definitely one you should try.

Buy: Read Between the Lynes  Barnes & Noble

Will I be adding this book to my library?: I'd like to!

From the Bookshelf to the Kitchen: Pancake Mini Muffins

You know what I really love to make? Muffins. I don't know why, but they are my favorite thing to bake. Maybe it's because they're fairly simple - you only have to put a batch or two into the oven (so it's not like cookies) and you don't have to frost them (unlike cake or cupcakes) and you don't have to master a good pie crust (I'm still working on that).

I found this recipe on Pinterest (of course) and immediately thought of The Art of Lainey. In the book, Lainey and Micah go to a pancake house, so I wanted to put a little twist on that.

"House of Torture?" I ask through clenched teeth.

Micah laughs, a big belly laugh like Trinity. "Read the fine print," he says.

I squint. Underneath the big, bloody word torture, someone has stenciled something in black ink. "'And pancakes'?" I turn to him. "Seriously?"-The Art of Lainey, page 87, by Paula Stokes

Goodreads  Read Between the Lynes  Barnes & Noble

The one thing I'd recommend with this recipe is getting mini muffin papers. That way you don't have to worry about scrubbing muffin pans (seriously, it's the worst). The recipe says to use whatever you might put in normal pancakes. I used frozen blueberries for some and chocolate chips for the rest, and I liked the blueberry ones a lot better.

Pancake Mini Muffins

2 c. all-purpose flour
2 T. sugar
1 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1 3/4 c. buttermilk
2 large eggs
3 T. unsalted butter, melted
blueberries, raspberries, or mini chocolate chips
maple syrup

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a mixing bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together buttermilk, eggs, and butter. While whisking, pour liquids into flour mixture and stir just until combined. Allow batter to rest for at least 2 minutes. 
Either spray two mini muffin pans or line them with mini muffin papers. Fill each cup about 2/3 full. Press 2-3 berries or 3-6 chocolate chips in each muffin. (Or you can bake them with nothing in them; then, once they're cool, brush them with melted butter and roll in cinnamon and sugar.) Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Cool for a few minutes in pan before removing to a wire rack. They taste best warm and with maple syrup. Store them in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

They're so good if you eat them warm and dipped in maple syrup!

Have a recipe/book suggestion for From the Bookshelf to the Kitchen? Comment below or email me at MDBCnumber1fan [at] gmail [dot] com.

Disney Book Tag

Like I've said before, I don't really do book tags. I did the Taylor Swift one in July, and I found this around the same time and decided I would do it, too. I have mad love for Disney movies and characters, so this will be fun. Here's the post my Twitter friend (@Dizneeee) linked me to that I'll be using to guide this post.

THE LITTLE MERMAID
(a character who is out of their element)

My choice is Anna Oliphant from Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins. When Anna arrives in France, she can hardly speak a word of the language and she feels completely out of her element.


CINDERELLA
(a character who goes through a major transformation)

For this one, I chose Gretchen Muller from Prisoner of Night and Fog. Her major transformation was that she comes to realize her Uncle Dolf and the Nazi Party are not all that they seem.


SNOW WHITE
(a book with an eclectic cast of characters)

I chose Deep Blue for this one because all of the mermaids are such different characters. They have unique personalities and interests and I can't wait to get to know some of them better in the rest of the series.


SLEEPING BEAUTY
(a book that put me to sleep)

Totally Notes from Underground, which I had to read for a lit class this past spring. So, so, so boring. 


THE LION KING
(a character who had something traumatic happen to them in childhood)



Cassie from The Naturals is a perfect fit. Her mother disappears when she's young; she was presumably murdered and it was definitely traumatic and formative for Cassie just like Mufasa's death was for Simba.


BEAUTY AND THE BEAST
(a book I was intimated by but found to be beautiful)

The Archived isn't a huge book, but it was definitely intimidating. It's a blogger fave and I was scared to death I wouldn't like it. Thank goodness I loved it!


ALADDIN
(a character who gets their wish granted, for better or for worse)



Totally Gladys Gatsby! She gets to be a food critic for a big newspaper in All Four Stars, which was definitely a wish for her.


MULAN
(a character who pretends to be someone or something they're not)

Wilhelmina from The Orphan Queen!


TOY STORY
(a book whose characters you wish could come to life)

This was a hard one because I figured I couldn't pick and choose which characters came to life, that it would be all of them. So I went with...



I want to be best friends with Paige, Tessa, Morgan, and Kayleigh. And as much as I like Paige and Max together, well, I want him for myself.


DISNEY DESCENDANTS
(my favorite villain or morally ambiguous character)



Totally Adelina Amouteru from The Young Elites. She is definitely the villain in some ways, but she's also mainly fighting for herself and her sister.

Credit for the minimalist Disney gifs: Jeca Martinez.

Review: Never Always Sometimes

Never Always Sometimes by Adi Alsaid
Grade: D
Release date: August 4, 2015
This ARC was provided by Read Between the Lynes in exchange for an honest review.
Summary: Best friends Dave and Julia were determined to never be cliché high school kids—the ones who sit at the same lunch table every day, dissecting the drama from homeroom and plotting their campaigns for prom king and queen. They even wrote their own Never List of everything they vowed they'd never, ever do in high school. 

Some of the rules have been easy to follow, like #5, never die your hair a color of the rainbow, or #7, never hook up with a teacher. But Dave has a secret: he's broken rule #8, never pine silently after someone for the entirety of high school. It's either that or break rule #10, never date your best friend. Dave has loved Julia for as long as he can remember.

Julia is beautiful, wild and impetuous. So when she suggests they do every Never on the list, Dave is happy to play along. He even dyes his hair an unfortunate shade of green. It starts as a joke, but then a funny thing happens: Dave and Julia discover that by skipping the clichés, they've actually been missing out on high school. And maybe even on love. 

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: This is Adi Alsaid's sophomore novel published with Harlequin Teen. For the most part, I enjoyed Let's Get Lost but Never Always Sometimes made me very mad. Pretty early on, I determined that Julia was basically a manic pixie dream girl who was "so unique" and tried really hard to be different but ended up just being a selfish jerk. She thinks it's cool to always call Dave by his full name (and she doesn't even use the right middle or last names 99% of the time). She dyes her hair pink. She wiggles her way out of consequences all the time. When Dave started to fall for another girl (who seemed much more realistic and normal), I was relieved. I would be fine with him dating Gretchen. But then, spoiler alert, towards the end of the book, Dave and Julia hooked up. And Dave had just asked Gretchen, who is his girlfriend by this point, to prom a few days earlier. Then, when the two get back to town, they kiss and of course Gretchen sees. By that point, I was so mad, I skimmed the rest of the book, so I'm not sure how it really ends except I'm pretty sure Gretchen takes Dave back and he's moved on from Julia. But there was a lot more that peeved me about this book. Julia was so nonchalant when she was trying to "seduce" one of their teachers, and I was cringing the whole time on behalf of the poor guy. Thank goodness the principal handled it correctly. Also, Dave's dad and Julia's dads and biological mom were barely present, so there were few consequences (and they were mostly ones that didn't seem too harsh) for the bad choices these teenagers made.
There was swearing, underage drinking, making out, and hooking up.

The Verdict: Skip this one. It's not worth your time.

Buy: Read Between the Lynes  Barnes & Noble

Will I be adding this book to my library?: Nope.