Review: The Geography of You and Me by Jennifer E. Smith

The Geography of You and Me

by Jennifer E. Smith

Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary Romance

[Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo]

Lucy and Owen meet somewhere between the tenth
and eleventh floors of a New York City apartment
building, on an elevator rendered useless by a citywide blackout. After they're rescued, they spend a single night together, wandering the darkened streets and marveling at the rare appearance of stars above Manhattan. But once the power is restored, so is reality. Lucy soon moves to Edinburgh with her parents, while Owen heads out west with his father.

Lucy and Owen's relationship plays out across the globe as they stay in touch through postcards, occasional e-mails, and -- finally -- a reunion in the city where they first met.

A carefully charted map of a long-distance relationship, Jennifer E. Smith's new novel shows that the center of the world isn't necessarily a place. It can be a person, too.

   I have a lot of love for Jennifer E. Smith. Her writing is flawless, and I always fall in love with her books. So whenever I got my hands on The Geography of You and Me, I knew I'd love it. I just didn't realize how much!

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  Lucy and Owen were meant to be from the very first page. I loved the way they interacted. It seemed so natural and realistic. With the few exceptions, I've never gotten this emotional over a bookish couple. But they just seemed real, y'all. With every twist and turn, my fingers were crossed for them to make it. Team Lowen forever.

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  The Geography of You and Me is the best of young adult contemporary romance. It has everything that makes a good one and so much more. It's been such a long time since I've felt this much of a connection to a story, and I'm in love with this feeling.

The Geography of You and Me in a gif.
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My Top 5 Bookish Couples

Happy Valentine's Day, lovelies!

In celebration of the day of love, I thought I'd share my favorite bookish couples!

Let the swooning begin!

1. Sydney and Adrian [Sydrian]

Bloodlines Series by Richelle Mead

2. Hazel and Augustus

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

3. Katie and George

Backward Compatible by Sarah Daltry & Pete Clark

4. Severus Snape and Lily Evans Potter

Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling

5. Arwen and Aragorn

The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien

Alright, who did I miss? 

Tell me your favorites in the comments!

I cried while searching for all of these gifs. No shame.

To Gif or Not to Gif

  Okay. Today I want to chat about gifs! I absolutely love using them. Whenever I really love (or even hate) a book, instead of doing a proper review I'd rather just gush and use lots of gifs. Sometimes I think the gifs get across my excitement way more than a wall of text can!

  But! I know some people hate gifs or just don't use them. One big reason I hear is because it slows down your page loading time. (Does it really make that much of a difference?) So! I want to know what you guys think about gifs. Are you fluent in gifs or do you cringe when you see them?

Review + Giveaway: Destroyed by L.A. Starkey

Destroyed by L.A. Starkey

(Soul Keepers #2)

Genres: Young Adult, Paranormal, Romance

[Goodreads | Amazon]

Now I lay me down to sleep,
Whom shall I trust my soul to keep?
If I should die before I wake,
I leave to fate my soul to take.

The seal has been broken and the Soul Keeper Prophecy set in motion. Marcus and Nicolas are battling for the heart of one woman, Pandora’s only daughter; however, not everyone is playing by the rules. With interference from both sides of the lines and too many deities with hidden agendas, the trio must take matters into their own hands and look for another ending, one that removes control from fate.

Can they find the missing page from the prophecy that has the ability to change everything?

Will the new stranger they’ve been given as a guide assist or mislead them?

Will Samantha make a decision on who it is that she truly loves, saving one and destroying the other?

What if her choice is no choice at all?

  THAT ENDING. Holy cliffhanger and a half. You're killing me, Starkey! It killed me that I couldn't snatch up book three whenever I got to the end of Destroyed because I have become so enthralled by these books and so into them. I can already tell that this is a series that I'll revisit several times!

  I loved all of the development in Destroyed. Not only did the story grow and drag me further into it, all of the characters showed a lot of growth, too. I think Sam showed the most, and I'm getting so attached to her! This book definitely made her stand out even more, and I cannot wait to see what the author does in the next book! I just know that I'll devour it!

  At times, it feels like you can cut the tension in this book with a knife. The Gods are being all sorts of crazy. But Starkey balances it out perfectly with the adventures of the characters and their relationships. The pacing is really fantastic. It was such an easy read; no drag, no info dumps, and no eye rolls!

  I'm so glad that I'll have book three soon! I truly am hooked on this series. It has everything that I love about YA novels and then some. I cannot wait to read more from L.A. Starkey. She's going to be a force to be reckoned with!

Read my review of the first Soul Keepers book, Deceived, here.

**I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review with no compensation.

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Review + Giveaway: Deceived by L.A. Starkey

Deceived by L.A. Starkey

(Soul Keepers #1)

Genres: Young Adult, Paranormal, Romance

[Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble]

They say a soul is the immaterial essence, the animating
principle, the actuating cause of an individual life.

But what if you had to share yours with the one person you hated the most?

The soul mate principle states that for every one soul there is another that will recognize its match, hence creating the perfect union.

But what if you had two soul mates, which would you choose?

What if your choices had eternal ramification?

Deceived, the debut novel in the Soul Keeper Series, is a modern day love story about the implications of having more than one soul mate, and having to choose between the two of them. The decisions of the gods has left the next generation, their heirs, torn between fate and reality, and the balance of the future hangs in anticipation of what's to come.

  This book! Oh my word. To sum it up in one word: amazing! L.A. Starkey absolutely slayed me with Deceived. The author is a friend of mine, so I kept myself in the dark with reviews of this book. I'm so glad I did, because nothing could have prepared me for how much I'd love it!

  Okay, so. I'm a vivid reader. I love whenever I can get lost in the world of a book. The author's writing was perfect for me. It was so easy to get swept up in the world. It was very fluid and descriptive. There was never that drag that I always dread in longer books.

  I loved Sam! The mystery surrounding her kept me intrigued, but I was still able to relate to her. The relationships between her and Marcus and Nicholas were really surprising. The author doesn't make it easy in picking one of the brothers over the other. All of the relationships in this book are great, though. I enjoyed the dynamic between the characters. It all felt surprising.

  All in all, I fell in love with this world! L.A. Starkey is such an amazing writer. It really shows. Deceived does end on a cliffhanger, so I immediately flew into the next book! This is one of my favorites books so far in 2015! Don't miss out on it!

Don't forget to stop back tomorrow for my review of the second Soul Keepers book, Destroyed!

**I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review with no compensation.

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Merry Christmas!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful Christmas!

And if you don't celebrate Christmas, I hope you're having a wonderful holiday season!

Soon...

Review:The Hit List by Nikki Urang

The Hit List by Nikki Urang

Genres: New Adult, Contemporary Romance

[Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble]

The Los Angeles Conservatory for the Arts is
supposed to be a new beginning for Sadie Bryant.
Moving across the country is exactly what she needs to escape the gossip surrounding her injury, the devastating betrayal of her ex-partner, and to rebuild her career as a solo dancer.

When the school announces that the annual Fall Showcase, a performance that secures a spot studying in London, will now require each dancer to have a partner, Sadie’s fresh start is a nightmare. Now she has to dance with Luke Morrison, the school womanizer with a big ego. Sadie doesn’t know how to trust Luke enough to dance with him after her last partner left her broken, but Luke is determined to change that.

Then, The Hit List comes out. A game of sexual conquest where guys get points for all the girls they hook up with—and it seems like every guy at the school is playing.

The girl worth the most points? Sadie.

  I was kind of on the fence while reading The Hit List. It has most of the usuals for a New Adult contemporary romance. It was inspirational and enjoyable, but with enough drama that I gave this book some side-eye more than once. The premise is unlike anything else I've read before, though. I wasn't sure how I'd feel about "The List", but I was relieved that it didn't overpower the book and there was so much more to The Hit List than that.

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  There is so much tension between Luke and Sadie. You can just feel it jumping off of the pages. But. I just didn't like Sadie that much. There's a touch of instalovelust that soured me from the beginning. But as the book progresses, she grated on my nerves instead of growing on me. She's all about that drama... and I'm just not. Though, there is plenty of character development that shows off Nikki Urang's writing skill. Her ability to draw me into the world despite my reservations is a testament to that.

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  All in all, I think The Hit List is a solid New Adult read. Devout fans will fall in love with Luke and Sadie, I'm sure. Even though it wasn't my cup of tea, I see it being a really good read for others more into New Adult books!

**I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review with no compensation.

Top 5 Authors I'm Thankful For

1. John Ronald Reuel Tolkien

2. Joanne Rowling

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3. Jane Austen

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4. Edgar Allan Poe

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5. Kira Adams

Finally

Review: Backward Compatible by Sarah Daltry and Pete Clark

Backward Compatible 

by Sarah Daltry and Pete Clark

Genre: Contemporary Romance

[Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble]

Not too long ago, in a town that, depending on your
current location, is either not super far or actually
quite close… It is a time of chaotic hormones. Two nerdy gents home for winter break have discovered a female gamer at a midnight release.

During the break, the gamer trio manages to reveal the game’s secret boss, a hidden enemy with enough power to destroy anything in its path. Pursued by other gamers who want to be the first to beat this boss, George and Katie race to level up, and, in so doing, restore decency and sexual activity to their personal galaxy…

  Backward Compatible is the language of my people. Since Spyro came onto the scene, I've been a gamer. Console, PC; doesn't matter. Just give me a good storyline and something to kill. I knew I'd love Backward Compatible on premise alone. I didn't realize that I would feel such a connection to the story and characters that I was sad whenever I reached the last page. I need more Katie and George in my life. Hell, I'll even put up with Lanyon to do so.

  Can we talk about Katie? I am Katie. Her dizzying addiction to video games and penchant for social awkwardness? That's me in a nutshell. Katie was such an honest character. So was George. The authors weren't apologetic in portraying these characters realistically, and I love them for it. Constantly reading about swoon-worthy guys and perfect heroines gets tiring. Having Katie and George was a much needed dose of reality. Their romance was amazing, too. It wasn't a kiss in the rain, instalove, we're perfect. It was awkward, unsure at times, and absolutely authentic. Geez. I love them.

  Not only were the characters great, but the whole book was. It's filled with nods to geek culture that I appreciated. The chapters are titled as levels. I audibly squealed whenever I saw the last chapter was titled Boss Level. It was epic. And the writing. Both of these authors were phenomenal writers.

  There are so many things that make Backward Compatible amazing. I could sit here and go on and on about it. It's just that good. One simply does not identify as a geek, gamer, or nerd without reading Backward Compatible.

**I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review with no compensation.