But, right from the get-go, Meredith literally jumps into a whirlwind romance with the groom’s bruised yet handsome stepbrother, Wit, while playing a huge game of assassin with all the wedding guests. Along the way, Meredith deals with her overwhelming grief, makes more concrete decisions for after high school, reconnects with the family she’s been ignoring, and determines her own self-worth. The Summer of Broken Rules is ideally suited for teens and young adults who enjoy contemporary romance. This book reminded me a lot of books like P.S. I Still Love You by Jenny Han, The Beach House by Beth Reekles, People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry, The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han, Breathless by Jennifer Niven, and Fade Into the Bright by Jessica Koosed Etting and Alyssa Schwartz. This book deals with themes such as coming of age/ growing up, death and grief, family, love and heartbreak, travel/ vacationing, and identity. Firstly, I enjoyed all the references to Taylor Swift’s songs in this book – like Meredith, I am a huge “Swiftie”. I loved how this book had a little bit of everything: a beach destination, some family drama and healing, a summer love, a fairy-tale wedding, lots of adventure, and an epic game of assassin. The Summer of Broken Rules is very well organized; in addition to numbered chapters, the book is also broken down chronologically by the day of the week. I loved how Walther included both an epilogue as well as a chapter taking place one year after the conclusion of the book; it was so satisfying to read about what was happening with Meredith post happily ever after. Lastly, I thought that the tropical descriptions of Martha’s Vineyard were an excellent form of escapism. To be honest, there wasn’t a lot about this book that I didn’t like. One critique is that the game of assassin was rather long as well as a little bit juvenile and intricate. Another critique is that Walther doesn’t give us the whole story of Claire’s passing at the beginning of the book; I was left guessing as to what happened to Claire until the whole story was revealed approximately mid-way through the book. Since this book is relatively short and takes place during summer vacation, I think that it would be a perfect summer or beach read! I gave this book a rating of 8 out of 10. This review was written for "The Nerd Daily". Click here to view this article on "The Nerd Daily's" website or copy & paste the following URL into your web browser: https://thenerddaily.com/review-the-summer-of-broken-rules-by-kl-walther/
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In the hopes of “fixing” her life and feeling closer to her Mom, Emily decides to complete the bucket list with Blake’s help. While ticking off the bucket list items, Blake, who has also lost her Mother, helps Emily to overcome her fears and deal with her grief. Eventually, the line between friendship and something more starts to blur. This is a teen/ young adult coming of age novel dealing with themes such as LGTBQ+, love and loss, change, death, grief, overcoming fear, family, identity, expectation versus reality, and small-town living. I highlighted a quote from the book, “live your life how you want to live it…tomorrow is never guaranteed”, because I thought that it nicely summed up the main take-away from the story. The Lucky List really reminded me of You Don’t Live Here by Robyn Schneider, Any Place But Here by Sarah Van Name, and Since You’ve Been Gone by Morgan Matson; so, if you were a fan of these YA books, then The Lucky List is definitely worth reading. Firstly, I loved Rachael’s previous two novels, Five Feet Apart and All This Time, and The Lucky List did not disappoint! The cover is so cute and fun; the big sunflower on the cover also fits the plot of the book perfectly. I loved the unique concept of this book. I enjoyed reading about all the cool adventures that Emily and Blake ended up going on for the bucket list, which included simple things like buying a book in another language, finding a four-leaf clover, and trying a new food as well as daring things like skinny-dipping at the local pool, getting a tattoo, and conquering a fear of heights. I also liked how the bucket list helped Emily to overcome her fear of loss and finally become brave enough to go after what she really wants (instead of just going along with what everyone expects her to want). Additionally, I liked how Emily learned more about her Mother as well as her own self because of the bucket list. Lastly, without giving anything away, I thought that the book ended perfectly. Overall, this was a fast and easy read for me! I was engaged right from the start because I wanted to find out what went wrong between Emily and her boyfriend and I couldn’t wait to find out what high jinx Emily and Blake got up to while completing the bucket list. On the other hand, since this book was relatively short, I would have liked it if some of the scenes went into a little more detail; for example, the chapters with the Huckabee Lake trip as well as Blake and Emily’s adventure in New Jersey could have been longer. Overall, this book was well-organized, engaging, and easy to follow. The Lucky List exceeded my expectations, and I would definitely recommend it to other YA fans. I gave this book a rating of 9 out of 10. This article was written for "The Nerd Daily". Click here to view this article on "The Nerd Daily's" website or copy & paste the following URL into your web browser: https://thenerddaily.com/review-the-lucky-list-by-rachael-lippincott/
But being a Princess isn’t all glitz and glamour…Princesses must follow strict schedules, rules, and dress codes as well as be knowledgeable about the Japanese customs, traditions, and language. On top of that, Izzy must deal with the invasive paparazzi, manipulative cousins, and a serious yet handsome bodyguard named Akio who might just be Izumi’s soulmate. Princesses are totally allowed to date their bodyguards…right? Tokyo Ever After is a teenage coming of age story full of romance, royalty, and dramedy. It deals with themes such as love and heartbreak, identity, family, race and culture, tradition, fame and royalty, female roles, growing up, and social hierarchy. The moral of the story is that, in Akio’s words, sometimes, “you’re not meant to fit in. Maybe you’re meant to stand out”. This book would be absolutely perfect for fans of movies like “Chasing Liberty”, “What a Girl Wants”, “The Prince & Me”, and “Crazy Rich Asians”. I would also recommend Tokyo Ever After to teens and adults who still love all things Disney Princess. First off, the cover is gorgeous and definitely captured my interest right from the get-go. I love the unique and modern twist that Emiko Jean took on the classic rags to royalty trope. I enjoyed how Tokyo Ever After focused more on Izumi’s relationships and identity as opposed to her Princess lessons and royal events. I particularly enjoyed reading about Izumi and Akio the bodyguard’s budding romance and I loved that Izumi’s story had a happily ever after! I also enjoyed reading about the awesome adventures Izumi has while exploring Japan with her cousin Yoshi, such as extravagant restaurants and karaoke. One thing that I found challenging about this book was the inclusion of Japanese dialogue, which wasn’t always translated into English; I found that this interrupted my reading experience and left me guessing as to what the characters said based on the context. I also found that some aspects of the plot were unrealistic; for example, in the age of social media, how did the royal family never find out that the Crown Prince fathered a child? How come Izumi’s Mother let her travel to Japan from America all by herself? Why did the royal family wait to do the paternity test until after Izumi had already travelled to Japan and met her Father? And why wasn’t anyone concerned that a high schooler was romantically involved with a 20-year-old? My nitpicking questions about the book aside, overall Tokyo Ever After was quite enjoyable and definitely worth reading; it totally fulfilled all my childhood Princess fantasies! I gave this book a rating of 8 out of 10. This article was written for "The Nerd Daily". Click here to view this article on "The Nerd Daily's" website or copy & paste the following URL into your web browser: https://thenerddaily.com/review-tokyo-ever-after-by-emiko-jean/
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