Wicked Valentine's Read-a-Thon!

I know I'm starting this read-a-thon a day late, but I was really in the mood to do one, so I don't care. My goal is to read 8 books during this read-a-thon. Here are the books I want to read:

Updates:

Sunday, February 9th
Read: Across the Universe - Beth Revis
Pages: 398

Review: If He Had Been With Me - Laura Nowlin

Title: If He Had Been With Me
Author: Laura Nowlin
Published: April 1st, 2013
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary
Format: E-Book
Pages: 336

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Summary:
If he had been with me everything would have been different...

I wasn't with Finn on that August night. But I should've been. It was raining, of course. And he and Sylvie were arguing as he drove down the slick road. No one ever says what they were arguing about. Other people think it's not important. They do not know there is another story. The story that lurks between the facts. What they do not know—the cause of the argument—is crucial.

So let me tell you...

Review: 
Wow! Just wow! This book has left me feeling so many emotions. It was absolutely heartbreaking. But in a good way. Does that make sense? What I mean is that "If He Had Been With Me" broke my heart into a million little pieces, but only because the author was able to write a story with the power to do so. As sad as this book was, it also left me with a good feeling afterward because it was such an incredible novel.

The thing with this book is that the ending is the beginning. You find out what the great tragedy is first and then you read about the years and days leading up to it. Despite knowing exactly how the story is going to end, you can't help but keep reading. To keep a reader's interest even after they know the ending is a remarkable feat that few writers can pull off, but the author did it splendidly.

The book switches between flashbacks and present day. Finny and Autumn's story is nearly as heartbreaking as the ending. It's about two former best friends still in each others lives by circumstance, but they're nowhere as close as they used to be. In fact, they're not even friends anymore. Choices made by both characters have led them away from each other and into two completely different groups of friends. A story told from Autumn's POV, she can't help but think about what might have been. I'm sure Finny's thinking about that too, as he goes through high school. Despite everything that's happened between the two of them, I can't help but wish that I had my own Finny. I wish I had someone who has been in my life since I was born.

Before writing every review, I make a pros and cons list. It helps me organize my thoughts on the book I'm reviewing. When doing a pros and cons list for this story, I was easily able to come up with a lot of pros. Cons, on the other hand, were more of a challenge. After struggling for a while trying to come up with things that I didn't like, I had a revelation: There weren't any. I had zero issues with this story. In fact, If He Had Been With Me is one of the best books I've ever read.

This was my first 5 star novel since I read The Fault In Our Stars several months ago. Both books had me feeling the same emotions. If you like well-written, heartbreaking books, I recommend you check this one out. While it's not as good as The Fault In Our Stars, it's pretty darn close.

Review: Wild Cards - Simone Elkeles

Title: Wild Cards (Wild Cards, #1)
Author: Simone Elkeles
Published: October 1st, 2013
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary
Format: E-Book
Pages: 288

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Summary:
After getting kicked out of boarding school, bad boy Derek Fitzpatrick has no choice but to live with his ditzy stepmother while his military dad is deployed. Things quickly go from bad to worse when he finds out she plans to move them back to her childhood home in Illinois. Derek's counting the days before he can be on his own, and the last thing he needs is to get involved with someone else's family drama.

Ashtyn Parker knows one thing for certain--people you care about leave without a backward glance. A football scholarship would finally give her the chance to leave. So she pours everything into winning a state championship, until her boyfriend and star quarterback betrays them all by joining their rival team. Ashtyn needs a new game plan, but it requires trusting Derek, someone she barely knows, someone born to break the rules. Is she willing to put her heart on the line to try and win it all?

Review: 
Wild Cards was a book that I was really looking forward to reading. I've read one other book by Simone Elkeles, Perfect Chemistry, and I absolutely loved it. Unfortunately, this novel wasn't as good as I remember Perfect Chemistry being. 

When I started this book, I was really excited. The first 30 pages or so were amazing. I thought that if the book was as good as those pages were, then this would easily be a 5 star read. It turned out, however, that the quality of the story decreased as the story progressed.

My first issue with the book arose when Derek and Ashtyn first met. While I thought it was a cute meeting, I was really disappointed when it was revealed who they were to each other. I had a hard time getting passed that, which impacted my enjoyment of the story.

Ashtyn was my favorite character. While I know there are others out there (Catching Jordan, being one of them), I hadn't yet read a book with a female football player as the lead, so it added an interesting dynamic to the novel. Derek left me a little confused, though. He was supposed to be a "bad boy", yet he didn't really do anything bad. His actions didn't reflect the reputation he held. I just wish his devious side had been explored more. The author's main focus was Ashtyn and Derek. Normally, that wouldn't be a problem. It is a romance novel after all. It starts to become an issue, though, when the other characters suffer. At times it felt like the author shouldn't have even bothered creating any other characters, they were so badly written. All of them felt like nothing more than props. I think Ashtyn's father was the worst. For a character with so much potential, very little attention was actually paid to him.

The number one problem I had was how Elkeles decided to end the book. I thought it was horrible. It was completely unrealistic. While this novel had some issues, for most of the story, the writing was not one of them. That changed with the ending. Part of me finds it hard to believe that the same author wrote both the ending and the rest of the book. It was that bad.

I know I've been very critical in this review, but the book was actually pretty good. On the surface, this was an enjoyable story written by an author who has serious talent when it comes to writing romance. It wasn't until I dug deeper that I started discovering some problems. If you're looking for a quick, romance novel that doesn't have a lot of depth, then this is the book for you. As long as you don't go into it expecting it to be the next great work of literature, then I think there is a good chance that you will enjoy this story.

Bout of Books 9.0: Day 5

I haven't posted any reading updates, so this post will have the amount I've read the previous days too.

Monday, January 6th - Thursday, January 9th

Book: The Distance Between Us
Author: Kasie West
Read: 320 pages
Status: Finished

Book: Just One Day
Author: Gayle Forman
Read: 187 pages
Status: Currently Reading

I haven't read as much as I would have liked, partly because I've been busy with school and partly because I've had a hard time getting into Just One Day. My school is cancelled today due to flooding, so I will hopefully be able to get more reading done. I think I might start on a different book, because I don't want the fact that I'm not really enjoying Just One Day to affect how much reading I get done.

Bout of Books 9.0: Day 1 (Includes Mad Libs Challenge)

I posted my goals for this read-a-thon  a few days ago. They can be found here.

Today, I'm participating in the Mad Libs Challenge hosted by Cheap Thrills. I haven't done many Mad Libs in my life, so I'm not really sure what to expect. So, without further ado, here is my attempt at the Bookish Mad Libs Challenge:

My Word Choices:
Character Name - Finnikin of the Rock - Melina Marchetta
Adjective 1 - The Lost Saint - Bree Despain
Adjective 2 - The Raven Boys - Maggie Stiefvater
Item - The Last Little Blue Envelope - Maureen Johnson
Occupation - The Iron King - Julie Kagawa
Act of Violence - Hex Hall - Rachel Hawkins
Adjective 3 - Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children - Ransom Riggs
Noun 1 - Gameboard of the Gods - Richelle Mead
Noun 2 - Dark Star - Bethany Frenette

Here's the Story with My Additions:

I just read the greatest book!
This guy Finnikin ends up in the middle of a/an lost conspiracy. Turns out his/her ancestors were pirates, and he/she might be the key to finding the raven envelope. It’s a mythic artifact that disappeared centuries ago, and now a shadowy group of kings are looking for it. No one knows what uncovering it might do, but these guys are willing to hex for it.
I won’t say anything else. But believe me, if you like peculiar stories with gameboards(s) and stars(s), you have to read this one.

Review: Golden - Jessi Kirby

Title: Golden
Author: Jessi Kirby
Published: May 14th, 2013
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 278


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Summary:
Seventeen-year-old Parker Frost has never taken the road less traveled. Valedictorian and quintessential good girl, she’s about to graduate high school without ever having kissed her crush or broken the rules. So when fate drops a clue in her lap—one that might be the key to unraveling a town mystery—she decides to take a chance.

Julianna Farnetti and Shane Cruz are remembered as the golden couple of Summit Lakes High—perfect in every way, meant to be together forever. But Julianna’s journal tells a different story—one of doubts about Shane and a forbidden romance with an older, artistic guy. These are the secrets that were swept away with her the night that Shane’s jeep plunged into an icy river, leaving behind a grieving town and no bodies to bury.

Reading Julianna’s journal gives Parker the courage to start to really live—and it also gives her reasons to question what really happened the night of the accident. Armed with clues from the past, Parker enlists the help of her best friend, Kat, and Trevor, her longtime crush, to track down some leads. The mystery ends up taking Parker places that she never could have imagined. And she soon finds that taking the road less traveled makes all the difference.

Review:
When I first heard about this book, I was immediately intrigued. The premise had me really looking forward to the novel. So much so in fact, that I bought it the day it came out. Unfortunately, it ended up being a case where my expectations exceeded the actual story.

The characters weren't the easiest to connect with. They were all a bit two-dimensional. However, there was some enjoyable character growth. The strides the main character, Parker, made nearly made up for her lack of dimension. Also, the romance between Parker and Trevor was hard to care about. If I had to pick a favorite character, it would probably be Parker's best friend, Kat. I must admit, though, she had her annoying moments.

The main thing that drew me to this book was the mystery it featured. After reading the summary, I really wanted to figure out what happened to Julianna and Shane. It ended up being predictable, though. From the beginning, the majority of the mystery was easy to figure out. The rest of it was a let down. After certain things were revealed, I ended up thinking to myself, "Really, that's it?" For a book about a mystery, there was very little enigma in it.

Jessi Kirby has been on my radar for a while now. Unfortunately, after reading this book, I'm not sure if I'll read another one by her. I wasn't really a fan of her writing style. Overall, I would rate this novel three stars out of five.

Review: The Fault in Our Stars - John Green

Title: The Fault in Our Stars
Author: John Green
Published: January 10th, 2012 by Dutton Books
Genre:Young Adult, Contemporary, Realistic Fiction
Hardcover: 318 pages


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Summary:
Diagnosed with Stage IV thyroid cancer at 12, Hazel was prepared to die until, at 14, a medical miracle shrunk the tumors in her lungs... for now.

Two years post-miracle, sixteen-year-old Hazel is post-everything else too; post-high school, post-friends and post-normalcy. And even though she could live for a long time (whatever that means), Hazel lives tethered to an oxygen tank, the tumors tenuously kept at bay with a constant chemical assault.

Enter Augustus Waters. A match made at Cancer Kid Support Group, Augustus is gorgeous, in remission, and shockingly to her, interested in Hazel. Being with Augustus is both an unexpected destination and a long-needed journey, pushing Hazel to re-examine how sickness and health, life and death, will define her and the legacy that everyone leaves behind.


Review:
This book completely screwed with my emotions. So many tears were shed while reading this story. John Green is a genius. An evil, twisted genius. I mean, seriously?!?! What kind of mind comes up with a story this heartbreaking??? I cried more than I have ever cried while reading a book. I was seriously lying on my bed, curled up in a ball, bawling. The whole time I was reading this, my family was treating me like I had lost my mind. Thinking about it now, I probably had. I guess John Green has the power to do that to a person. This book can make a grown man cry for his mommy. That's how hard on the emotions it is.

I'm not the only one who feels this way about this novel. It's a testament to the author that people are affected as much as they are by it. If the writing had been terrible, people probably wouldn't cry as much as they do. But because John Green had the audacity to write an incredible book, many people are left sobbing their eyes out. There should be a rule stating that only those with little writing talent can write sad books. That would save a lot of people a lot of tears.

In conclusion, I hate you, John Green. I hate you for making me cry my eyes out and I despise you for writing a book as unbelievably good as this one. I also can't stand you for how much writing talent you possess in your right pinky finger alone. Compared to you, the rest of us wannabe writers shouldn't even be writing phone-books.

If you're considering reading this book, you should be prepared. At least have a box of tissues nearby, maybe two. And word of advice: don't read this book in public. Read it in front of people and you'll be that freak cursing the world while reading a book. Passers-by would be afraid of you and question your mental health. I don't think you want that. I know I don't.