A Love Hate Thing by Whitney D. Grandison

This is a compelling debut from Whitney D. Grandison.

The story starts after Tyson Trice has survived a major tradgedy. This causes him to be tossed into the affluent coastal community of Pacific Hills, which after being shot is nothing to him. Nandy Smith is Pacific Hill’s golden girl and saying she’s not pleased that her parents have taken in a troubled teenage boy is putting it lightly. She fears the consequence, of her parents taking in Trice to be detrimental to her reputation and summer plans. However, it soon becomes apparent that the line between love and hate is very thin between Trice and Nandy as they both begin to change each other. With Trice bringing Nandy out of her shell and Nandy forcing her way into Trice’s heart but will that be enough to stop, Trice being pulled back to Lindenwood’s streets?

I am an absolute sucker for a friends to lovers/enemies to lovers trope and boy did this book deliver on that. I loved how Grandison portrayed Trice and Nandy’s story. I loved how when were little Trice and Nandy were the best of friends but as they grew up their paths in lives took different turns. This causes Nandy to be less than luke warm to Trice on his return back into her life and them having to get to know each other all again. Grandison does this so beautifully with her writing, she doesn’t rush over portraying the differences in their lives as well as spending time on detailing their connections. I love all the cliches the author threw in their as well.

I listened to the audiobook of this book which was narrated by the wonderful Adenrele Ojo and Barrie Buckner. These narrators were incredible in bringing Trice and Nandy’s story to life. 

You can buy A Love Hate Thing from Amazon and Book Depository

INTERVIEW with Rosie Danan

Which writer has had the greatest influence on you? 

Probably Eloisa James. Her books were some of the first radically feminist romance novels I read and then when I met her at a signing years ago she was really encouraging about my idea to write a prude meets porn star rom-com. 

What advice would you give to aspiring writers? 

Common advice is ‘write what you want to read’ and I think that’s true, but I would also recommend writing what you need to read. By that I mean, write the book that scares you, the one that explores the embarrassing, tender-to-the-touch moments from your past and present. Write books that remind you about what you want and what you deserve from life and love.

In a lot of ways, I was, and still am, scared that I wrote a book that explicitly examines sex and shame. But that squirmy discomfort is the reason I needed to write THE ROOMMATE. It’s a reminder to me and anyone that reads it that women don’t need to apologize for wanting and pursuing pleasure in all its various forms. We’re entitled to our desires and fuck (or rather, don’t fuck) anyone that says differently. 

What were your favorite books as a child? 

Any book by Gail Carson Levine, but especially Ella Enchanted. I’ve always loved fairy tales but hers were like catnip to me because the princesses weren’t just there to be saved, they saved themselves. Her writing is also impeccable and rich and I come back to it in my adulthood and still feel each word down to my bones. 

What is your favorite book today? 

The Captive Prince trilogy by C.S. Pact. She’s the best storyteller I’ve ever read. I will never fall out of love with her characters as long as I live. Those books are my favourite love story, but they’re also laugh out loud funny and full of breath-taking action and adventure. 

What are your favourite movies? 

The Mummy. It was one of the first, and remains one of the only, action/adventure movies where the narrative centres entirely around a female character. Evie causes the inciting incident, she pursues the adventure, she saves the day (and falls in love with a hunky cinnamon roll who respects and adores her). Doesn’t hurt that everyone in that movie is EXTREMELY hot and talented. *chef’s kiss*

Why did you become a writer? 

I have an insatiable appetite for love stories and it got to the point where I couldn’t satisfy my constant hunger for romance with other people’s narratives anymore. I had to write my own in order to fully immerse myself in the feelings—the trials and triumphs—that make falling in love the most incredible thing a human can do, in my humble opinion. 

Where do you write? 

I’ve moved seven times in the five years since I started writing, so I don’t really have a consistent location. Usually a couch is involved. 

List your motivational music. 

Book one was Barenaked Ladies. Book two is Rilo Kiley. 

What is the drink next to your keyboard? 

Black coffee in the morning. Tea with milk in the afternoon. Red wine for sex scenes. 

What is your ideal writing break? 

Walking in the park. This is I get most of my inspiration for gentle tweets

Who is your favourite historical figure? 

Amelia Earhart because she was brave and independent and stylish AF. 

Where would be your time travel destination? 

One of Bruce Springsteen’s early concerts at the Jersey Shore. 

The New York Times calls Rosie Danan’s debut novel, THE ROOMMATE “a book about people expanding into their best possible selves…warmly funny and gorgeously sexy.” The rom-com has been optioned for film, and a companion book THE INTIMACY EXPERIMENT is forthcoming April 6, 2021 in both the US and UK.

After participating in the writing mentorship program Pitch Wars as a 2018 mentee, she was thrilled to rejoin the organization as a 2019 and 2020 mentor.

When not writing, Rosie enjoys jogging slowly to fast music, petting other people’s dogs, and competing against herself in rounds of Chopped using the miscellaneous ingredients occupying her fridge.

As an American expat currently living in London, she’s developed an incurable fondness for electric kettles. 

Loveboat, Taipei by Abigail Hing Wen

“Our cousins have done this program,” Sophie whispers. “Best kept secret. Zero supervision.”

And just like that, Ever Wong’s summer takes an unexpected turn. Gone is Chien Tan, the strict educational program in Taiwan that Ever was expecting. In its place, she finds Loveboat: a summer-long free-for-all where hookups abound, adults turn a blind eye, and the nightlife runs nonstop.

But not every student is quite what they seem:

Ever is working toward becoming a doctor but nurses a secret passion for dance.

Rick Woo is the Yale-bound child prodigy bane of Ever’s existence whose perfection hides a secret.

Boy-crazy, fashion-obsessed Sophie Ha turns out to have more to her than meets the eye.

And under sexy Xavier Yeh’s shell is buried a shameful truth he’ll never admit.

When these students’ lives collide, it’s guaranteed to be a summer Ever will never forget!

Book Review

I thought this was a fantastic debut novel and.

I absolutely loved all the drama of this book, it had everything you could possibly want. Drama, romance, discussions of identity and relationships. EVERYTHING! I loved the way the author wrote Ever’s story it felt so effortless and had me reading it in a couple of hours. The author focuses on the small and big details which makes this story super addictive. 

I loved reading Ever’s story and was constantly rooting for her happiness and just wishing that she was able to dance instead of going to med school. I have to admit I was not a fan of a lot of other characters in the book, but I did grow a soft spot for Xavier and I liked Rick just not as much as Xavier. I really liked how the story developed and we got to see the real in all the characters. The character development was so good!

 One character I never warmed to was Sophie, halfway through the book I threw her in the trash and just left her there, she just wasn’t for me.

The discussion within this book about  Asian-American’s was super insightful, it explored the ways parents needed to try and understand their children a bit better but also the fact the western world needs to not project our stereotypes onto Asian people as they are just not reflective of Asian-American’s as a whole or individuals

Loveboat Taipei is an super fun read and I would highly recommend it. 

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 5 out of 5.

You can buy this book from Amazon and Book Depository

INTERVIEW WITH BRIANA MCDONALD

Hi Briana! Thank you so much for agreeing to be on my blog, can you tell us about PEPPER’S RULES FOR SECRET SLEUTHING?

My debut novel is PEPPER’S RULES FOR SECRET SLEUTHING, an action-packed middle grade mystery featuring overzealous amateur detective Pepper Blouse as she solves the mystery of her Great Aunt’s murder – and her new feelings for girls.   

What inspired you to make Pepper a detective?

I grew up reading and loving mysteries, so I’ve always wanted to write one. For Pepper’s Rules for Secret Sleuthing, it was fun for me to explore an amateur sleuth who is working on both an external mystery (her Great Aunt’s possible murder) and an internal one (her hunch that she may like both boys and girls). And one of the things I love most about the mystery genre is that as a writer, I can push the plot and action to create some fun and thrilling scenes, while still remaining within the realm of realistic fiction. 

Pepper’s overeager and stubborn personality makes her the perfect sleuth to set out on to crack a dangerous case. But I also wanted to explore how her approach to sleuthing – and uncovering the truth – changed over the course of the mystery. Pepper is someone who has always been obsessed with the truth, even at the cost of her relationships – but the relationships and things she learns during her current case push her to reconsider the ways she’s approached sleuthing, and to grow not only as a detective, but as a person. It was fun for me to use this genre I love as a device to explore character and, more specifically, the coming-of-age narrative in middle grade. 

You also discuss in the book Pepper discovering she has feelings for girls, this is not something you often see in Middle Grade. Do you think this should be seen more?

I absoutley hope to see more of this, and am so proud of all the increidble queer middle grade novels that have been released in recent years. For me, it was important to write queer story in the genre I loved growing up (mystery/adventure), where the focus of the story and conflict wasn’t the character’s sexuality or gender identity. I’m so excited to see more diverse books being published in children’s literature, so young readers can see themselves represented across genres and identities. 

Sometimes when I read a book, I recognise myself in a character. Is there any character in your book that you see yourself in?

I think I have a bit of all of them in me! To no one’s surprise, I share a lot in common with my protagonist, Pepper. She has a fear of change, and holds on so tightly to her past that she struggles to move forward or let herself grow. I have definitely struggled with that, too, because change comes with a lack of control and a lot of uncertainty. Writing Pepper’s story helped me challenge my own fears and insecurities, and I hope readers who see themselves in her feel empowered by her journey, too. 

Her iconic pink-and-white polka-dot backpack is inspired by one I own, so on a more literal level, there’s that, too! 

Finally, if anything, what do you want readers to take away from this book?

First and foremost, I hope readers have FUN reading this book! I hope they enjoy the mystery, and the stakes, and the twists and turns. But ultimately, I hope that Pepper’s story helps readers learn to be kinder to themselves and others, and that they find the courage to embrace change in themselves, their lives, and their relationships. 

Briana McDonald writes adventurous and diverse stories for young readers. Her debut, PEPPER’S RULES FOR SECRET SLEUTHING, will be available with Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers in Fall 2020. Briana is also the author of several published pieces of short fiction and is a book reviewer for The Literary Review. When she’s not writing, she is an Academic Advisor at Columbia University.

She can be found online at:
Website: https://brianarosemcdonald.com/
Twitter/Instagram: @BrianaRMcDonald

A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson

Pippa Fitz-Amobi is the character we’ve all been craving and Holly Jackson gave her to us. 

Five years ago, schoolgirl Andie Bell was murdered by Sal Singh at least that is what the police and everyone in town believes. Everyone excluding Pip who when we meet her has just decided her Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) topic. She is going to solve the murder of Andie Bell. As Pip starts to investigate, she starts to uncover secrets relating to the case that someone in town desperately wants to stay hidden.

I’d so many people reading and loving this book that when lockdown happened and I no longer had A-Level revision looming over my head, I knew I had to get to this book. This book did not fail to meet the expectations I had set for it in act it had succeeded them. There was not a moment of this book where I was not hooked.

The story is gripping from start to finish as we follow Pip not only investigating Andie’s disappearance but also into her family life. At no point was the story predictable and every time I thought I knew something I was actually wrong.

My favourite character after Pip has to be Ravi. I loved him as a character and for supporting Pip through all the dangerous situations she was putting herself in. If I was going to investigate a murder, I would want Ravi as my partner! Side note: I also loved Barney!

Some of my favourite things about the book was that it was mixed media. The mixture of normal dialogue and plot with the EPQ extracts and transcripts made me love the book even more. It also made the book feel even more fast paced. 

I also loved the representation in this book and how the author had LGBTQ characters and normalised it. I loved how the murder mystery always stayed the main plot but the author integrated Pips life as a teenage and her range of family and friends into it while still keeping a high level of interest in the murder.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone who loves a good murder mystery with a hint of romance but mostly just pure murder!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 5 out of 5.

You can buy A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder from Amazon and Book Depository

My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell

Exploring the psychological dynamics of the relationship between a precocious yet naïve teenage girl and her magnetic and manipulative teacher, a brilliant, all-consuming read that marks the explosive debut of an extraordinary new writer.

2000. Bright, ambitious, and yearning for adulthood, fifteen-year-old Vanessa Wye becomes entangled in an affair with Jacob Strane, her magnetic and guileful forty-two-year-old English teacher. 

2017. Amid the rising wave of allegations against powerful men, a reckoning is coming due. Strane has been accused of sexual abuse by a former student, who reaches out to Vanessa, and now Vanessa suddenly finds herself facing an impossible choice: remain silent, firm in the belief that her teenage self willingly engaged in this relationship, or redefine herself and the events of her past. But how can Vanessa reject her first love, the man who fundamentally transformed her and has been a persistent presence in her life? Is it possible that the man she loved as a teenager—and who professed to worship only her—may be far different from what she has always believed?

Alternating between Vanessa’s present and her past, My Dark Vanessa juxtaposes memory and trauma with the breathless excitement of a teenage girl discovering the power her own body can wield. Thought-provoking and impossible to put down, this is a masterful portrayal of troubled adolescence and its repercussions that raises vital questions about agency, consent, complicity, and victimhood. Written with the haunting intimacy of The Girls and the creeping intensity of Room, My Dark Vanessa is an era-defining novel that brilliantly captures and reflects the shifting cultural mores transforming our relationships and society itself

BOOK REVIEW

This is an incredibly hard hitting book and I would be lying if I said there was a moment in this book where I felt comfortable but the point of the book is your supposed to be uncomfortable, you’re supposed to be and feel disgusted and the author does incredible job to ensure that is exactly what you feel.

It definitely lives up to the title and is an incredibly dark book. It’s also quite graphic which is what makes the story realistic and so hard hitting. It doesn’t cover up or hide parts of the abuse, it’s explicit in showing how Vanessa was abused. There were times that I felt physically sick reading this book and that shows how well the author tells Vanessa’s story. We as readers are able to see and realise all the ways in which Vanessa is abused and the way the abuse followed her and continually affected her in adulthood. This allowed the author to bring up so many important topics for those who are abused such as the validity of Vanessa’s feelings and emotions that she felt at the time and even as an adult, as well as her views of what happened as consequence of the abuse.

I also liked how the author brought up the topic of how those who are abused must speak out against the abuse for the ‘greater good’ and should do it on behalf of all victims. I found that quite compelling to read and discuss with others who had read the book also.

I buddy read this book and thank god I did because it was so hard to read, and we often had to take breaks for our mental health but to discuss it with someone who was reading it was great. I would highly recommend doing it as a buddy read or book club read.

We both felt so mad while reading this book particularly at the school and her parents, I just found it so infuriating. Especially alongside the constant references to Lolita, I spent half the book disgusted and the other fuming. Let me not even get started on Vanessa’s parent’s.  Even her conversations with her ex-boyfriend were quite interesting to read to really understand the extent of the abuse as it bought up how hard it is to understand abuse unless you’ve gone through it and even then no abuse is the same.

I do really think the authors writing of this book was incredible and extremely powerful as she does a very good story at bringing the story to life so much that you feel sick. Every sentence she writes holds so much weight to the overall story. She also portrays how Vanessa finds herself caught up in an obsession with Strane where we as readers find ourselves caught up in an all-consuming hatred and rage towards Strane . I found it hard at times to read Vanessa’s opinion of him because she was so obsessed with him and though she was loved by him and therefore failed to see the abuse.

It’s been over 2 months since I read this book and I still find myself thinking about it because it was so intense. I didn’t even think I could write this review because I still feel so disgusted and I don’t even know how to express the extent of how haunting this story is but ultimately I feel that this story is one that needed to be told.

You can buy this book on Amazon and Book Depository.