This book is what happens when 13 Going On 30 and Freaky Friday have a totally predictable baby. It wasn't the worst thing I've ever read, but if I'm going to spend time with a 30% selfish, 30% obtuse, 20% tunnel focused, 10% superficial and 10% genuinely decent person, I'll watch a dealer's choice episode of The Kardashians. Kennedy is every high school girl you've ever known (add a dash of head trauma).

This was a tough one. I really enjoyed the fresh take on sensitive subject matter handled in a more conversationally engaging way that Thirteen Reasons Why (don't even get me started). I also enjoyed the supernatural twist & reciprocal narrative elements (our character evolves as does the story). It wobbled a couple times on plot crutches (second act 'villain') & SLIIIIIGHTLY pat ending. This was a mooooostly good read!

First Test is the first in a quartet by Tamora Pierce that continues a fantastic series tapestry woven from an original fantasy universe created by, and for, kickass women. Kel doesn't have magic to get by as the first female attempting her knighthood in Tortall. What she DOES have is an iron will, several feathered friends and a tendency to land in trouble. Love LOVE this young reader/teen series (and author)!

This series is a little bit country (kickass like Gini Koch's 'Alien' series) and a little bit rock'n'roll (badass like Richelle Mead's 'Chicagoland Vampires' series) and a whole lot of independent lady-balls-to-the-wall action with an alternate twist on angel/demon/human shenanigans. One of the best discoveries I've made in awhile 💁🏼📚. Two bookworm-thumbs up!

Sweet Cthulhu this is pure horseshit on a level I haven't seen since 'ol Nicky Sparkles (Nicholas Sparks) had his heyday with Dear John & the like. Seriously. The only thing missing from this wounded-man-meets-woman-who-heals-through-love-oh-wait-insert-tragedy-and-drama was someone getting cancer. Though exploiting wounded veterans for a happily ever after is close. It's also fairly sexually descriptive for a teen read. *insert vomit emoji here*

Leave this book on the shelf and pick something, anything, else up instead. A rudimentary, PSA-for-libraries plot serves up lukewarm romance by the slightly offensive and entirely patronizing (not to mention subversively body-shaming) spoonful. Check Me Out will leave you with a lingering sour taste on your literary tongue.

Halfway through this Edelweiss ARC and it is a template for how to alienate a reader with an adorable premise assassinated by a clunky plot, a subversively unlikeable heroine who, unless she gets her shit together, will 100% die alone and large chunks of blank pages where I'm assuming some text conversations between characters will go. 🤦🏼‍♀️

This is a great young reader/early teen recommend for fans of the Alex Rider (teenage spy) series. It's what happens when Ethan Hunt and Jason Bourne have a baby (with a dash of puberty and fisticuffs tossed in). The Bodyguard series by Chris Bradford is a well-written, engaging, fast-paced and action-packed read for all ages!

I absolutely loved the HBO limited series run of Big Little Lies which got me curious about what else Liane Moriarty might have written but expectations ultimately fell short of reality in this adequate-if-uninspiring tale of slightly depressing domestic "what if"dom all wrapped up in a convenient resolution bow. It's not bad. It's just not great.

And thus continues my obsession, OBSESSION I SAY, with Sarah J Maas in the first book of her Fae series. This is definitely racier than the Throne of Glass books so heads up on the teen-reader-recommends! Just like her other series, Thorns and Roses starts off a bit slowly and then blasts off from Book Two and beyond into literary nirvana. Waiting for Book Four like 😛... Write faster, Sarah!

I am obsessed, OBSESSED with this series in a way I haven't been about a teen paranormal adventure romance series since Vampire Academy. A kickass female protagonist leads this first book in a fantastically creative Hunger Game Of Thrones. Throne of Glass starts off narratively slower in the first book but STICK WITH IT. Trust me. Book Two and beyond skyrocket to the top of the literary charts and stay there. A must-read series for me.

A solid wrap up with everything you could want in the Chicagoland Vampire series. Merit and Ethan once again step up to save Chicago and their wedding day both with swords AND sarcastic snark. A girl couldn't ask for anything more! And stay tuned for the spinoff Chicagoland series that'll satisfy any lingering cravings for more fangs and fun in the Windy City.

A faaaaaaascinating look behind the curtain of Scientology as told by Leah Remini who uses her wit and honesty to illustrate a chilling example of cult mythology popularized by celebrity endorsements and guarded by a seemingly impenetrable wall of practitioner silence still in place to this day.

Gladiator meets Game Of Thrones vs Assassin Clones in space (with a dash of romance and cold-blooded murder). What does it mean to be human? Have a purpose and a soul? Nemesis may not know at the beginning, but she climbs along a razor-sharp learning curve till the end. Pretty fast-paced and eminently readable for a quick dip in the YA pond.

The first book in a Vampire Academy spinoff series that takes everything you loved about the original series and explodes into another richly imaginative world with characters you've already grown to know and love. All the clues you never knew were being dropped like breadcrumbs in the Vampire Academy series are here to be gobbled up in a whole new way. Sydney and Adrian are #relationshipgoals.

Sweet lord this book could double as a doorstop and/or fireside foot stool because clocking in at approximately 800 pages, this next installment in Kristen Britain's increasingly long-winded epic fantasy series isn't pulling any word count punches. It's been a slow decline in quality since Green Rider but I'm still hanging in there. Barely. By a thread.

Another captivating entry into one of my favorite urban fantasy series of all time. Much like the movie Memento, make sure you're paying close attention to the chapter timelines and don't assume a linear narrative. That said, never bet against this wily coyote and her crew because Mercy may not be a cat but she ALWAYS lands on her feet... eventually.

One of the best teen series I've ever read with humor, wit, action and undying romance galore. Add a dash of vampires who don't sparkle in the sun, a shake of dhampires with an epic love and a whole cast of original characters just waiting to capture your imagination; shake well and serve with a side of awesome. Rose and Dimitri are #squadgoals.

Could've been the co-authorship with Nina Bocci or just one of those things where a story doesn't quite hit home but Roman Crazy was a lukewarm, sluggish (and lacking somewhat in the relatable, charming characters Alice Clayton is widely known for) attempt at traveling the woman-scorned-catching-the-one-who-got-away redemption road. I'd recommend her Redhead Revealed series of books to anyone. This? Not so meh-ch.

The series-within-a-series-standalone-not-standalone nature of the Incryptid novels can be a LITTLE difficult to explain when recommending this fantastic Steve-Irwin-Meets-Everything-That-Goes-Bump-In-The-Night series (and this novel in particular) but it is worth it if you can get another reader hooked on the rush of Aeslin mice and covert conservational shenanigans.

When you catch your pup on #nationaldogday stealing the lead on your beach read! ❤🐕

I don't normally read many non-fiction books but this heartbreakingly poignant journey through the life (and death) of neurosurgeon Paul Kalanithi will remind you of the depth of how richly life can be lived (and appreciated) if we try. The grace and humor and wisdom of this man shines through every page as an example of beautiful literature. Read this today.

I loved Something Borrowed and Something Blue but almost every other Emily Giffin title (including this one) is a relentless slog through Nicholas Sparks-worthy depressing drama. The main character in this book gets shafted by life so hard so many times I was frankly surprised at the end of the novel she still retained the ability to walk.

If you're looking for a modern version of The Giver (that book is an iconic classic, but still) then look no further than this teen read chock-full of moral and ethical quicksand in a deceptively 'topian future (no "dis" about it) where death is a day to day job (one not everybody survives).

The Newsflesh Trilogy starting with Feed is hands-down one of my favorite series of books in the last decade. A bitingly fresh take on the same old zombie mythology combined with an almost prescient finger on the pulse of modern news coverage today this dystopian-future-political-zombie-thriller will not fail to entertain.

If you grew up on Harry Potter and already finished The Dresden Files then the next series you're gonna love is the Iron Druid Chronicles because the humor, shenanigans and sly mixture of modern and myth will hit the spot like none other.

Lady James Bond meets Harry Potter in this supernatural noir genre mashup filled with humor, whodunnit and more from an author who gives us a whole new world to explore. I can't say enough good things about this book other than it pulls from almost every genre of awesome for that difficult reader-recommend in your life.