Review: It's Not Summer Without You

Title: It's Not Summer Without You

Author: Jenny Han

Publisher: Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing

Rating: 4/5

Find it here: Amazon, Goodreads

Last year, all of Belly's dreams came true and the thought of missing a summer in Cousins Beach was inconceivable. But like the rise and fall of the ocean tide, things can change-just like that. Suddenly the time she's always looked forward to most is something she dreads. And when Jeremiah calls to say Conrad has disappeared, Belly must decide how she will spend this summer: chasing after the boy she loves, or finally letting him go.

My thoughts:

It's Not Summer Without You is the second book in the Summer trilogy and so far I've really enjoyed this series. On the outside, it looks like you're picking up a fun, light summer read but what you get is a deep, heart-wrenching story about first love and loss and everything in between.

What I love most about this book is the raw, honest emotions that come from teenagers who are going through the hardest time of their short lives so far. We are able to read all of Belly's thoughts, her stupid mistakes and the over analyzing of every word that Conrad says to her. It really takes me back to when I was a teenager and I used over think everything that my friends would say to me. Like all the world is out to get you.

I also felt torn throughout the whole book when it came to Conrad and Belly's relationship. Part of me wanted her to accept the breakup and move on because he was a jerk to her for practically the entire book. But then I would remember why he was being so withdrawn and self-centered and he just needed her to give him time to open up when he was ready. But, of course, nothing works out or ends how you want it to and neither of those two scenarios happened.

Another theme that is so relevant to Young Adult books and teens in general is change. Change is hard to accept, but since it's always going to be a part of life, it's something that needs to be learned. Everything changes for the characters of the Summer trilogy and we see how each deal with the challenge of grieving and accepting loss differently.

New information is also revealed and Belly's feelings are possibly swayed towards another important figure in her life. It's Not Summer Without You continues the story of Belly, Conrad and Jeremiah. Though it ended differently than I would have hoped, it was still a very good, yet sad, read. I've enjoyed reading the Summer trilogy so far!

Review- Wither

Title: Wither

Author: Lauren DeStefano

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing

Rating: 4/5

Find it here: Amazon, Goodreads

Blurb:

What if you knew exactly when you would die?

Thanks to modern science, every human being has become a genetic ticking time bomb-males only live to the age of twenty-five, and females only live to the age of twenty. In this bleak landscape, young girls are kidnapped and forced into polygamous marriages to keep the population from dying out.

When sixteen-year-old Rhine Ellery is taken by the Gatherers to become a bride, she enters a world of wealth and privilege. Despite her husband Linden's genuine love for her, and a tenuous trust among her sister wives, Rhine has one purpose: to escape-to find her twin brother and go home.

But Rhine has more to content with then losing her freedom. Linden's eccentric father is bent on finding an antidote to the genetic virus that is getting closer to taking his son, even if it means collecting corpses in order to test his experiments. When the help of Gabriel, a servant Rhine is growing dangerously attracted to, Rhine attempts to break free, in the limited time she has left.

My thoughts:

I was so excited to start reading this book! Almost every blog I read was giving it raving reviews and pretty much convincing me that it was one of the best reads of 2011. Not only was this appealing, but the cover is just absolutely gorgeous! I also don't but books in hardcover because I have the worst time keeping taking care of the jackets so that really tells you how amazing I believed this book to be. I'm not saying that the book was bad and that I was completely disappointed. Don't get me wrong here! I liked it.

It is a very unique story about what happens when we think that we can get rid of all the genetic diseases and pretty much genetically engineer a perfect population. An entire disease-free generation is created and now their children are suffering from an unknown virus that starts to effect females at age twenty and males at age twenty five. No one from the new generation has survived this virus and scientists are frantically working for a cure. Rhine is kidnapped and forced to marry Linden so that they can have children and hopefully Linden's father will find the cure to save their lives.

It took me a little while to read it because it was kind of slow in the beginning. It had a few exciting scenes and I started to get interested in what was going on with the story and wanting to find out what is really going on in the basement. Overall, I really liked the book and I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the trilogy!

Review- The Summer I Turned Pretty

Title: The Summer I Turned Pretty

Author: Jenny Han

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Rating: 4/5

Find it here: Amazon, Goodreads

Blurb:

Belly measures her life in summers. Everything good, everything magical happens between the months of June and August. Winters are simply a time to count the weeks until the next summer, a place away from the beach house, away from Susannah, and most importantly, away from Jeremiah and Conrad. They are the boys that Belly has known since her very first summer-they have been her brother figures, her crushes and everything in between. But one summer, one terrible and wonderful summer, the more everything changes, the more it all ends up the way it should have been all along.

My thoughts:

This book is so cute and so summery it literally made me want to go out and get a tan to get ready for summer. Belly has known Jeremiah and Conrad for as long as she can remember and they are all she talks about when she goes home during the school year. Summers are her favorite time of year because she feels like she belongs at the summer house. But the summer she turns sixteen is the summer that everything changes. Since brother is going off to college he only spends a little time at the summer house and she is left to spend time with only Jeremiah and Conrad, her mom's best friend's sons. Conrad is acting more anti-social than ever and she feels as if Jeremiah is keeping something from her.

The Summer I Turned Pretty not only follows Belly through the current summer but also flashes back to important moments of many of the summers before. We see when she fell in love for the first time, her first kiss and even sometimes, her most embarrassing moments.

This book is heart-warming and sad; I laughed and I cried. It's a great start to a series I am eager to finish.