The Last Little Blue Envelope by Maureen Johnson

Title/Author: The Last Little Blue Envelope (Little Blue Envelope #2) by Maureen Johnson
Publisher/Date published: HarperTeen, April 26th 2011
How I got this book: received it from the publisher through NetGalley

***SPOILERS POSSIBLE FOR BOOK 1***

Goodreads summary: "Ginny Blackstone thought that the biggest adventure of her life was behind her. She spent last summer traveling around Europe, following the tasks her aunt Peg laid out in a series of letters before she died. When someone stole Ginny's backpack — and the last little blue envelope inside — she resigned herself to never knowing how it was supposed to end.
Months later, a mysterious boy contacts Ginny from London, saying he's found her bag. Finally, Ginny can finish what she started. But instead of ending her journey, the last letter starts a new adventure — one filled with old friends, new loves, and once-in-a-lifetime experiences. Ginny finds she must hold on to her wits... and her heart. This time, there are no instructions."

I enjoyed 13 Little Blue Envelopes, though I did have some issues with it. And the same thing goes for this one.

I mean, how are the grown-ups OK with Ginny going off yet again with people she doesn't know??? I mean, really?? If I said I was gonna travel across Europe with a guy I met one day ago, my mom would have me committed to a mental hospital. Or lock me in my room. And believe me, my parents were not that strict. There's just something seriously wrong with the adults in this series.

Now I've gotten that off my chest, let's get on to the other stuff.

I liked Ginny more than I did in the first book. She seems to know what she wants more and though I thought she should have told her uncle about Oliver and his plans right after meeting him, I thought she did alright with the rest of it.
Though I can not for the life of me think of a good reason why she wouldn't have asked Oliver about his reasons for doing what he did in the first place.

I liked Keith in the first book, but in the second he lost pretty much all of his good qualities for me. He just seemed petty, especially compared to Oliver, who I really liked. There's something about those British guys I guess. I hated how he was treated and thought he dealt with it very elegantly.

Another thing I liked: the last assignment Aunt Peg had for Ginny. I LOVED the last part of it and the growth Ginny goes through is amazing! The scene in the graveyard nearly broke my heart.

Also, props to the author for getting the Dutch conversation she has in it right! If anyone who's read it doesn't understand what's being said, let me know, I'm happy to translate ;)

My rating: 3 stars

The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland In A Ship Of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente

Title/Author: The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland In A Ship Of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente
Publisher/Date published: Feiwel & Friends, May 10th 2011
How I got this book: received an ARC from the publisher (can you believe it? My first ever printed ARC!)

Goodreads summary: "Twelve-year-old September lives in Omaha, and used to have an ordinary life, until her father went to war and her mother went to work. One day, September is met at her kitchen window by a Green Wind (taking the form of a gentleman in a green jacket), who invites her on an adventure, implying that her help is needed in Fairyland. The new Marquess is unpredictable and fickle, and also not much older than September. Only September can retrieve a talisman the Marquess wants from the enchanted woods, and if she doesn’t... then the Marquess will make
life impossible for the inhabitants of Fairyland. September is already making new friends, including a book-loving Wyvern and a mysterious boy named Saturday."

This book was such a sweet read! And can I just say that I love that every chapter had an illustration at the beginning? So pretty! And it was something I adored about fairytale books when I was little. And I still do.

I really enjoyed this take on Fairyland and the way it works and certain rules that almost always exist in these stories. I feel a bit cryptic saying this, but I really don't want to give anything away.

I loved the whole feel of it, September is a girl who can make anything happen. And she throws herself wholeheartedly into this adventure and I really liked her. And can I just say that I loved the green jacket! Is it weird that one of my favourite characters was a jacket? There was such emotion coming from it, major props to the author for that!

The way she described wyverns, I pictured A-Through-L as a huge chickenlike dragon. But luckily, the picture on the cover corrected me, which saved some weirdness. I loved the wyvern and his family. He seems so lovable and I just wanted to hug him. And as a kid I would have loved having a miniature version as a stuffed animal.
Oh, who am I kidding, I would love one now!

I really enjoyed reading it and I love looking at the illustrations, they're awesome!

My rating: 4 stars

Shade by Jeri Smith-Ready

Title/Author: Shade (Shade #1) by Jeri Smith-Ready
Publisher/Date published: Simon Pulse, May 4th 2010
How I got this book: own it

Goodreads summary: "Love ties them together. Death can't tear them apart.
Best. Birthday. Ever. At least, it was supposed to be. With Logan's band playing a critical gig and Aura's plans for an intimate after-party, Aura knows it will be the most memorable night of her boyfriend's life. She never thought it would be his last.
Logan's sudden death leaves Aura devastated. He's gone.
Well, sort of.
Like everyone born after the Shift, Aura can see and hear ghosts. This mysterious ability has always been annoying, and Aura had wanted nothing more than to figure out why the Shift happened so she can undo it. But not with Logan's violet-hued spirit still hanging around. Because dead Logan is almost as real as ever. Almost.
It doesn't help that Aura's new friend Zachary is so understanding — and so very alive. His support means more to Aura than she cares to admit.
As Aura's relationships with the dead and the living grow ever complicated, so do her feelings for Logan and Zachary. Each holds a piece of Aura's heart... and clues to the secret of the Shift."

COVER LOVE!! Isn't it pretty?! I love it, love the color: the purple and the single red ribbon in her hand. So simple, yet so fitting.

Anyway, onto the story. I thought it was really interesting that somewhere in the past the Shift happened and everyone born after can see and hear ghosts. And that the can't stand the color red. Which was kind of ironic remembering *something* about The Sixth Sense (I know practically everyone has seen it, but still, wouldn't be nice to spoil it for those who haven't).

Aura seemed like a nice girl, who has all the insecurities a girl her age probably has. She seems to know what she wants in some aspects of her life, like learning more about her mom and dad and the Shift. And I liked that she'd already done some research before we met her, it feels more realistic than just having everything (including the motivation to find out about things) handed to her throughout the story.

Logan.. I'm not really sure how I feel about him. Some times he seemed so, so sweet and other times I just wanted to smack him and yell SERIOUSLY?? WHAT WERE YOU THINKING??? And it's not really nice to do that to someone who died. But really, how could he be so stupid? His death seemed a good idea evolutionwise.
Anyway, he did have his good moments and I think he really cares for Aura, which is nice.

And then there's Zachary. How I love Zachary. I can just hear his perfect accent in my head and *swoon*... So yes, I'm team Zachary. All the way.

I was however annoyed by one thing: Aura claims to love Logan so much, why does she lust after Zachary even before he died? And how can she even think about kissing him after Logan died? It was all a bit fast and hormonal in my opinion.

The ending made me so, so happy I already had Shift waiting for me! Gosh, I had to start it right away!

My rating: 4 stars

We'll Always Have Summer by Jenny Han

Title/Author: We'll Always Have Summer (Summer #3) by Jenny Han
Publisher/Date published: April 26h 2011 by Simon & Schuster
How I got this book: recieved it from the publisher as an egalley

***WARNING: POSSIBLE SPOILERS FOR FIRST 2 BOOKS***

I try to avoid them, but just in case.

Besides, if you haven't read the first two books, you really should. As in: go read them now. Seriously. Right now.

It's been two years since we last left Belly to fend for herself amongst the Fisher boys. And a lot has happened in the past two years.

And apparently, somewhere along the way, Belly lost most of her spine.

It's sad, but true, I liked this book less than the first two. I still really enjoyed it, but something that happened pretty early on in the book bugged me:
SPOILER WARNING, light up to read:
I'd never have taken someone who cheated on me back that easily. Really. And I'd NEVER EVER EVER accept their proposal right after. I mean, WHAT?? That was so weird.

I sort of lost some of the respect I had for Belly after that. And OMG, am I ever glad she finally has at least partly gotten rid of that horrible, horrible name! Her friends at university know her as Isabel of Iz, which is waaaaay better! I liked Belly less in this book though, I understand what the author was doing and that she had to make the big event happen somehow. But I don't really like the way things went down. And I didn't like Jeremiah as much in this one as I did in the previous books. I felt sort of betrayed by him by the thing mentioned in the spoiler above.

I was however glad to read Conrad's point of view. I never really understood Belly's love for Conrad. Sure, he seemed crushworthy, but that was about it for me. I enjoyed the chapters narrated by him the most and Han sure pulls a guy's voice off as well as she does a girl's, which is kinda awesome.

I felt slightly cheated by the ending. It felt a bit sudden and after such a struggle throughout 3 books, I would have liked to be shown a bit more about the happily ever after.

With all the things I've said I liked less in this one than the previous books, I still really enjoyed this book. I love Han's writing and hope she'll start a new series soon! I loved feeling 16 and in love again :) These books are the perfect summer read.

My rating: 3,5 stars

The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter

Title/Author: The Goddess Test (Goddess Test #1) by Aimee Carter
Publisher/Date published: April 26th 2011 by Harlequin Teen
How I got this book: received it from the publisher through NetGalley

Goodreads summary: "It's always been just Kate and her mom — and her mother is dying. Her last wish? To move back to her childhood home. So Kate's going to start at a new school with no friends, no other family and the fear her mother won't live past the fall.
Then she meets Henry. Dark. Tortured. And mesmerizing. He claims to be Hades, god of the Underworld—and if she accepts his bargain, he'll keep her mother alive while Kate tries to pass seven tests.
Kate is sure he's crazy — until she sees him bring a girl back from the dead. Now saving her mother seems crazily possible. If she succeeds, she'll become Henry's future bride, and a goddess."

YAY! I LOVED THIS BOOK!

So, now I got that out of my system, onto the review:
I have a thing for Greek and Roman mythology. But more for Greek mythology. I'm not even sure why, I just do. I was obsessed with it when I was younger and these stories are probably one of the first things I read in English, cause there wasn't enough translated to Dutch in my humble opinion.

And this book, gosh, it brought together everything I love about Greek mythology and everything I love about YA. I fell in love with the characters, they are amazing. Kate is a great heroine, she knows what she wants and isn't afraid to speak up and do something about it if she doesn't like what's going on. I also loved how close she was to her mother. I'm a bit tired of the whole absent-parents going on in YA, so this was really nice. I'd want to be friends with Kate, that's how real she felt to me.

And Henry, OMG, sweet, dark, tortured and broken Henry! How I love him! He really seems to care about Kate and I thought the chemistry was just wonderful. I don't get how anyone could ever leave him.

I was a bit annoyed by Ava now and then, but nothing too distracting from the storyline. Another thing which made me go a bit 'really?':
***SPOILER WARNING, light up to read***
I get the whole secretive thing with the test and everything, but really, did they have to keep it a secret from Kate that her mother was really a goddess and actually wasn't going to die for real?? It seemed a bit cruel.

Oh, and another thing for those who've read it:
Did any of you guess about Demeter being Kate's mom? I figured something was going on, but for some reasons I thought she might be Persephone's daughter.

Anyway, I'm love, love, LOVING this book and I'm SOOO looking forward to the sequel!! That'll be a loooong wait...
My rating: 5 stars

Bumped by Megan McCafferty

Title/Author: Bumped (Bumped #1) by Megan McCafferty
Publisher/Date published: Balzer + Bray, April 26th 2011
How I got this book: received it from the publisher through NetGalley

Goodreads summary: "When a virus makes everyone over the age of eighteen infertile, would-be parents are forced to pay teen girls to conceive and give birth to their children, making teens the most prized members of society.
Sixteen-year-old identical twins Melody and Harmony were separated at birth and had never met until the day Harmony shows up on Melody’s doorstep. Until now, the twins have followed completely opposite paths. Melody has scored an enviable conception contract with a couple called the Jaydens. While they are searching for the perfect partner for Melody to bump with, she is fighting her attraction to her best friend Zen, who is way too short for the job.
Harmony has spent her whole life in religious Goodside, preparing to be a wife and mother. She believes her calling is to bring Melody back to Goodside and convince her that “pregging” for profit is a sin. But Harmony has secrets of her own that she is running from.
When Melody is finally matched with the world-famous, genetically flawless Jondoe, both girls’ lives are changed forever. A case of mistaken identity takes them on a journey neither could have ever imagined, one that makes Melody and Harmony realize they have so much more than just DNA in common."

It was probably also due to my not reading the summary before reading the book, but I was a bit confused at first. And there's so much slang, it was a bit hard for me to get into.

But once I did, it blew me away! I really, really enjoyed this book! I didn't connect to Melody and Harmony from the start, but slowly I got there. For Melody at least. Harmony not so much. If I'd come across someone like Harmony, I'd think they escaped from the nearest mental hospital. And I don't mean it in a positive way (if you can even take that in a positive way).

But I loved Melody. Of course, she's brainwashed as well, but she seemed more realistic. The story switches POV each chapter between Melody and Harmony and while reading Harmony's, I was looking forward to getting back to Melody. I thought she was so much more interesting. I could see myself being friends with her.

And Zen, how I love Zen! Even if he's not 'reproaesthetical' (see, told you there was a lot of slang). I love him and I hope we'll see even more of him in the next book!

It's scary to think that with all the crazy stuff happening in the medical world these days, it could easily be real as far as people only being able to get pregnant until they're 17 or 18 years old. What's also scary is what's happening right now. In Holland where I live, a couple of weeks ago it was all over the news that a 12-year-old girl gave birth to a baby while she was on school trip. A child having a child. It's horrifying.

But, back to the book. I am SOOO looking forward to the next one! I really enjoyed this one and if you enjoy dystopia as a genre, I'd totally recommend it!

My rating: 4 stars

It's Not Summer Without You by Jenny Han

Title/Author: It's Not Summer Without You (Summer #2) by Jenny Han
Publisher/Date published: April 27th 2010, Simon & Schuster
How I got this book: own it

***SPOILERS LIKELY FOR BOOK 1***

I always try to avoid them, but you know, they can slip in (sneaky little things really).

We meet up with Belly (I still think this is one of the most horrible names ever), Jeremiah and Conrad the summer after The Summer I Turned Pretty ended. Jeremiah calls Belly to ask her to come along with him to find Conrad, who's suddenly left school in the middle of his finals. Of course, he's gone to Cousins.

I loved meeting up with the characters again. It felt like getting together with friends and just hanging out. It was relaxing. It was another perfect summer read. This one is darker than the last and there are bucketloads of sadness going around.

Han shows us what happened in the last year through flashbacks and I was dying to find out exactly what went on between Conrad and Belly! And oh my gosh, it was heartbreaking! It brought tears to my eyes and I felt 16 again and hurting because one of the boys I was in love with broke my heart. I so wanted to hit Conrad even though I know it would be totally inappropiate given the setting.
SLIGHT SPOILER, light up to read:
It was at Susannah's funeral when Belly found him in the basement with that stupid girl whatsherface and they had a fight. I know you can't hit someone who's mother just died, but seriously? I would have been SOOO tempted.

Anyway, I absolutely love Han's writing. She manages to engage me completely and just makes me forget all about the rest of the world with her storytelling. I think I loved this one even more than I did the first book!

Go read it. Or the first one if you haven't already.

My rating: 5 stars