Book Review: The Summer I Turned Pretty

TITLE The Summer I Turned Pretty 
AUTHOR Jenny Han
MR RATING 10/10
(MY) SYNOPSIS Cousins Beach. It's Belly's favorite place in the whole world and she goes there every summer. Cousins Beach is where Susannah is. Cousins Beach is where Jeremiah is. But most importantly, Cousins Beach is where Conrad is.

Since practically ever, Belly has had a major crush on Conrad, Susannah's eldest (and most handsome) son. But he's always thought of Belly as a little sister, not someone he'd kiss. Even though Belly knows this and Conrad all but spells it out for her, she can't help but lust after him.

Then there's Jeremiah. The goofy, caring, cute Jeremiah who's always been Belly's best friend. He's the type of guy who loves football (unlike his brother who only plays it because of their dad) and is always looking for fun. Belly loves Jeremiah too, but just like a brother. Not like she loves Conrad.

But this summer, everything changes. This summer, Jeremiah sees Belly as not a friend, but... someone more than that. Everyone notices Belly's change, even careless Conrad. Belly doesn't think she's any different, but they know she is. She's older and pretty.

Jeremiah keeps giving Belly subtle hints, even when he lopes off with Conrad and Belly's older brother Steven, leaving Belly behind. But all oblivious Belly can see is Conrad and how Conrad has changed, too. She still sees Jeremiah as just her friend.

In a summer where some things are pretty and some things are not, Belly finds herself on edge. She doesn't know what to do, especially with new guy Cam and his kind and romantic gestures. And when Susannah starts acting weird, Belly doesn't know who to turn to. Because this summer, everything changes.

MY COMMENTS I absolutely loved this book!! One reason I loved it was because the majority of the chapters were short. And I don't know about you, but I love short chapters because I hate stopping in the middle of a chapter when I'm reading. It's just an OCD thing I have, I guess.

One thing especially amazing about The Summer I Turned Pretty was that it had flashback chapters. Like, it would have the chapter open telling what age Belly was during a particular summer. The flashback chapters always had a significance pertaining to the previous or next chapter in the present. It was really interesting and it really connected the story by having what happened in summers prior to the book's beginning.

It had lovable characters. The characters were relatable and realistic, especially Belly because I could really relate to all the changes she was going through. And all the boy problems she had. She was a fun and interesting character, perfectly executed in first person POV. I also couldn't help falling for Jeremiah and Conrad. Jenny Han did a great job describing them and their very different personalities. It reminded me of The Vampire Diaries a little bit, because I was caught between two brothers (just like Belly and Elena). Jeremiah was sweet and fun, while Conrad was mostly serious but engaging. But anyway, I also loved Susannah. She gave Belly that second caring mother figure, the person who loved her as much as her actual mother. The person who was always there for her.

The sense of summer was always there. Sometimes when I was reading, I felt as if I was really there at Cousins Beach because it was so descriptive and Belly was always making funny comments about what was going on. It all seemed so very tangible. The Summer I Turned Pretty would be the perfect book to be made into a movie. Not to mention it's a trilogy. I cannot wait to buy the sequel It's Not Summer Without You once it comes out it paperback.

Another thing, don't you just love the cover? I have a thing with covers: books always pull me in if the cover is intriguing. And that's exactly what this cover is. I noticed it in the store, loved the cover, heard it was amazing, so, naturally, I bought it. Well, my grandma bought it for me, but you get the point.

All in all, you will not be disappointed with this YA read. It was pretty awesomely amazing and the story line was fun, realistic, and full of surprises from summers past. I suggest reading it when you have a lot of free time because it was very hard to put it down (after all, I had to go to bed sometime). So go to B&N, order it online, find it at your local library, or borrow it from a friend. It's too good to let it go unread :)

Book Review: She's So Dead to Us!

TITLE She's So Dead to Us
AUTHOR Kieran Scott
MY RATING 11/10 (That's right. This book deserves an improper fraction!)
(MY) SYNOPSIS Orchard Hill. The perfect town divided into the Norms (normal, average people) and the Cresties (popular, rich people). The Cresties have their towering mansions, their basketball courts and pools, their country club, and they live on the top of the crest, therefore they are called Cresties. Two years ago, Ally Ryan was one of them. Ally had the picture-perfect Crestie life: best friends like Shannen Moore and Chloe Appleby, the best parents who actually loved her and were actually around, the best basketball skills Orchard Hill High had seen. But that all changed when her dad's investment plan backfired, losing all their money and her friends' money, too. Then it was goodbye Crestie friends, goodbye Crestie mansion, goodbye fabulous life. And goodbye Mr. Ryan.

Now, two years later, Ally is back in Orchard Hill. Her dad has disappeared and her mom has landed a job in Ally's old hometown. But now Ally is no longer a Crestie, she's a Norm. And Norms don't blend well with Cresties. So when Ally tries to get back her old life and her old friends, it doesn't exactly work out. Her old friends are blaming Ally for everything her dad did and Shannen Moore is holding an old secret over Ally's head. Life couldn't seem to go back to normal.

But then there's that new guy living in Ally's old room. The new Crestie who doesn't know who Ally is, doesn't know barely anything of what her father did. And his name is Jake Graydon. Ah, Jake Graydon, the perfect, athletic, hottie. He meets Ally, instantly falling for her. She falls for him. Too bad his new friends are her old ones, making Jake just out of Ally's reach.

MY COMMENTS You need to seriously go buy this book. It is my new favorite and I am not even kidding. I couldn't put it down, it was so good!

First off, the characters are relatable and realistic. Ally is your all-around nice girl, but she sure knows how to put her foot down! She's determined and sarcastic, comical and fun. She reminds me of myself in some aspects, especially because she immediately fell for the cute rich guy living in her old house :) Okay, on to him. Jake Graydon. When you want a fictional character to be real, you know a book is good. And man, every girl would swoon after Jake if he suddenly came to life. At first, he seemed like a cocky jerk, but his character's development was really interesting. He turned out to be really sweet, yet a total teenage boy. Now Shannen Moore. Wow. This girl is mean! She's one of those characters though that you just can't help but love because you hate her so much. At times, I genuinely thought she was coming around... and then she'd strike again with something super nasty! Her character definitely kept the drama coming. And Annie. She's a spunky little girl that I really liked because she gave Ally a Norm friend that actually was her friend. I liked seeing her always beat Ally at crossword puzzles when they were working at CVS. All the other characters really made the story too and I loved all of them, even the Idiot Twins because their comments were hilarious. Hammond and Chloe, the seemingly perfect It Couple, also drew me in because you knew something was going on. Some kind of drama. They couldn't be that perfect.

The plot. Wow, such a great plot. It was different than anything I have ever read, yet it wasn't so over-the-top unrealistic that I didn't like it. In fact, it was very realistic and dramatic. Of course, the mean girls were really mean, but that's what made it interesting and made the story keep going! And it's not like another one of those clique-y mean girl story lines, either. It has substance. And depth, because the mean girls didn't used to be like that. And the main character isn't mean. She's just awesome.

You will love the way the Point of View is written. It alternates between Ally and Jake's POV, letting you see what the other thinks of each other without the other knowing. I guess it's kinda like that irony Shakespeare used in Romeo & Juliet. I think it's called dramatic irony, when you know something the characters don't. Anyway, I really liked how that was written, especially because it gave you some insight on not only the main girl character, but the main guy character, too.

All in all, this book made me laugh out loud, it made me yell at it, and it made me smile. My brother looked at me weird sometimes but he knows I get really into my books. Especially good books. The teenage banter was totally believable (I definitely would say a lot of those things!) and Kieran Scott nailed the cute guy effect. But she always does. I fall in love with practically every guy she writes about in the Private series and Privilege series (she writes under Kate Brian for those)! :D But, getting back to SSDTU. This book is a MUST read. It is the perfect YA read for the summer (well, for any time. I read it in two days. I could've finished in one but I tried to make it last a little longer... to no avail). The only thing I didn't like was the MAJOR cliffhanger ending! Of course, I knew that was coming. It is going to be a trilogy. And Kieran Scott likes cliffhangers, just pick up any book in the Private series. Man, Scandal's cliffhanger is torture! Haha, but anyway, AMAZING BOOK. Go buy it right now and you will never be able to put it down until you finish it! I just fell in love with it!

Now off to reading The Summer I Turned Pretty! I have to finish it quick before Wanted (Pretty Little Liars #8) and Sweet Deceit (Privilege #4) come out on Tuesday! Happy reading! :)

Forgot to mention the SSDTU cover. The cover is gorgeous! And it ties into the story really well. Just another thing to make you want to go get it. Right now. Like, go.

And one more thing. A shout out to Kieran Scott . I won a contest on her blog and received a signed copy of SSDTU in the mail on Tuesday. Thank you SOOO much (again) Kieran! As you can see, I very much enjoyed it!