Monday, February 13, 2017

Review: How to Break a Boy by Laurie Devore

Release date: January 31, 2017
Author info: Website | Twitter
Publisher: Imprint
Pages: 342
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher provided for review
Buy the book: Barnes & Noble | Amazon | The Book Depository
Keep your enemies close, but your friends closer.

Olivia Clayton has mastered the art of tearing others down to stay on top. She and her best friend, Adrienne, rule their small southern town like all good mean girls do--through intimidation and manipulation.

After Olivia suffers a family tragedy and catches Adrienne sleeping with her boyfriend, Olivia is over it. She decides to make a change--but it's impossible to resist taking Adrienne down one last time. Up to her old tricks, Olivia convinces golden boy Whit DuRant to be her SAT tutor and her fake boyfriend. But when it starts to feel real, Whit gets caught up in Olivia and Adrienne's war.

Olivia may ruin everything she touches, but this time she won't go down without a fight--not if it means losing Whit.

And definitely not if it means losing what's left of herself.
You know, How to Break a Boy was an interesting read. I expected something different from what it was, certainly something lighter and more straightforward, but I can't say it's not worthwhile.

At times, How to Break a Boy is actually hard to read. There are moments when Olivia is making the worst choices I could imagine, and I just wanted to smack her. It's hard to read about a character who is so different and who you know is making the wrong decision, but who believes she's making the right one. It's not that she's unlikable, especially by the end of the book, but Olivia truly doesn't know who she is--and I think that's what makes it worthwhile.

By the end of the book, Olivia still doesn't know who she is, but she's working on it. She's done so much to hurt people, but she's figuring it out--and that's why I think How to Break a Boy is interesting. It's the story of a girl who realizes her life is far from what she thought it was, and she breaks down in that realization. It's kind of like watching a train wreck, because you can't look away yet it's hard to endure.

But I really liked the romance! Whit really is exactly what Olivia needs, and you hate to see him get hurt. Moments between them are hard to read as well, because I just wanted Olivia to really open up and just give up on her vendetta against Adrienne.

Problem is, I think there are people who won't like the "mean girl" aspect of it. Olivia and Adrienne are truly awful to others and one another. The book doesn't make excuses for them, but it's hard to imagine they--Adrienne especially--have a good understanding of just what they're doing.

How to Break a Boy is a fascinating read. It's one I don't think will be for everyone, but it's a great character study of Olivia, warts and all. I'll definitely be looking for more from Laurie Devore.


About the author:

Laurie Devore was born and raised in small town South Carolina and graduated from Clemson University. She now lives and works in Chicago, where she misses the charms and contradictions of the south every day. In her spare time, she reluctantly runs marathons, watches too much TV,  and works a “y’all” into every conversation. How to Break a Boy is her first novel.

Thursday, February 9, 2017

Starfall Launch Blitz + Giveaway


Hi, booklovers!

I’m author Melissa Landers, and I’m so excited to launch STARFALL, the second and final book in my Starflight duology! This story picks up shortly after the first book ends, but now Cassia and Kane are the main characters, with Doran, Solara, and the rest of the Banshee crew pitching in to help take down an intergalactic mafia. (You know, just an ordinary day in space.) And while saying goodbye to characters is never easy, I think I gave the crew a proper sendoff with plenty of humor, heart, and action. I hope you love STARFALL as much as I do!

Haven’t read the first book? You’re in luck, because for a limited time, Starflight is on sale for 99 cents in all e-formats. Now you can binge read the entire duology in one sitting!

Praise for Starflight:

“Smart, action-packed and utterly addictive!” –New York Times bestselling author Amie Kaufman

“Starflight has the cinematic appeal, warp-speed action and unlikely heroes of Star Wars.” –Justine Magazine

“A lively tale of romance, space pirates, conspiracy, and made (as opposed to genetic) families.” –Booklist

“A great choice for fans of raw sci-fi action, reminiscent of the lawlessness presented in the television series Firefly.” –School Library Journal

If you love sci-fi adventure with a dash of romance, I hope you’ll pick up the Starflight duology today. Starflight and Starfall are both available in stores and online.






Buy STARFLIGHT:

The Book Depository (free international shipping!)






Buy STARFALL:









To celebrate my book birthday, I’m offering one lucky winner a Starflight duology swag pack, complete with bookmarks and two signed mini posters! The giveaway is open internationally. Due to sweepstakes laws, entrants must be 18 years or older to participate.

Best of luck, and happy reading!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Melissa Landers is a former teacher who left the classroom to pursue other worlds. A proud sci-fi geek, she isn’t afraid to wear her Princess Leia costume in public—just ask her husband and three kids. She lives outside Cincinnati in the small town of Loveland, “Sweetheart of Ohio.” For more information or just to say hello, visit www.melissa-landers.com.

Monday, February 6, 2017

January Recap

Hiiii! Back again with a recap! I had to wait till I was actually home with some actual light outside to get my pictures taken, so that's why this is late! Like I said last month, part of my hope for 2017 is that I'm going to get fewer books to keep--whether that be books I've bought or been given for review. I have so many books to read already, so I'm hoping to whittle down those piles, as well as actually keep up with the review books I do get.

I think I'm doing okay with that? I'm not buying much, for sure, but I've gotten my fair share of review books. Ooooops. So let's look at what I got!

What Books Did I Get?



Dragonwatch by Brandon Mull
The Beast Is An Animal by Peternelle van Arsdale
Sisters' Fate by Jessica Spotswood
Gilded Cage by Vic James
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

All but Sisters' Fate are from work. They've been sending some really good ARCs, and I snatch them up. I can defend that because I'm in charge of kids and teen, and I'm largely the only one who reads the stuff among the booksellers, anyway. So I get the gooooooods. I'm pretty excited to have Sisters' Fate because it finishes my collection of that series' ARCs! I have them all, though I haven't read this one yet. Hopefully it ends well!

But... I got more than I should have when it comes to eARCs...





See? I did bad. But... Maybe because a couple of these are really far away, I can feel less guilty?

What Did I Post?

What Did I Read?

The Book Jumper by Mechtild Glaser
Caraval by Stephanie Garber
Gemina by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff
How to Break a Boy by Laurie Devore
Cold-Hearted Rake by Lisa Kleypas
Marrying Winterborne by Lisa Kleypas
Just Like Heaven by Julia Quinn

Currently reading: The Dark Days Pact by Alison Goodman
Favorite of January: Gemina

Y'all. I'm so proud of myself for sticking to my TBR! I only read one book that wasn't on the list, and that was because I was in the mood for historical romance, but not the Elizabeth Hoyt one I had left on the pile. I'm calling it a win!

What Will I Read?


I kept a couple of holdovers from my January TBR, because I'm still interested in getting to them this month! I made this TBR smaller, because I am planning on reading a few eARCs and ebooks this month. I've been dying to read Simon Vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda, so I'm definitely going to make room for it, and I'm planning to read a couple of January and February eARCs. But also, Devil in Spring comes out at the end of the month, and I will be dropping everything to read that ASAP, so imagine that's on the TBR, because !!!!! I'm dying.

What Am I Doing?

Well, I'm behind on commenting and posting. I do have a small backlog of books I've read but not reviewed, so hopefully one day soon I'll get to it. 

But school seems more demanding this semester? I had one assignment that made me go observe a librarian, so that's probably why, but hopefully I'll get into the groove and it'll get better. I just feel like I'm doing homework every spare moment of the past couple of weeks, but I don't really think that's true? I am finding that once I'm done with homework I don't want to read, so I didn't get as much reading done this month. I'd rather stare at the tv and watch my same shows over and over again. 

I've been doing AMAZING with not spending money, y'all. I've bought groceries and paid bills, and that's pretty much it. I've bought food maybe three times? That's huge for me, and I hope to get better this month coming. I'll buy Devil in Spring and buy food and my copy of Caraval at the signing, but that's largely it. At least, aside from...

We're going to Disney World this month! I feel like I'm eating, sleeping, and breathing Disney right about now, but that's totally alright. That's probably why I'm not reading, truly, because any other free time is spent obsessing. My coworkers will probably be happy once this trip is done, because I'm talking about Disney almost 24/7. :)


Well that's it for this month! I'm still liking the recap format!