Review | Every Last Promise by Kristin Halbrook

Title: Every Last Promise by Kristin Halbrook
Series: N/A
Genre: YA - Contemporary
Publication: April 21st 2015 by HarperTeen
Format: eARC
Source: Netgalley
Rating: ★☆☆☆☆

Synopsis:Perfect for fans of Laurie Halse Anderson and Gayle Forman, Every Last Promise is a provocative and emotional novel about a girl who must decide between keeping quiet and speaking up after witnessing a classmate's sexual assault.

Kayla saw something at the party that she wasn't supposed to. But she hasn't told anyone. No one knows the real story about what happened that night—about why Kayla was driving the car that ran into a ditch after the party, about what she saw in the hours leading up to the accident, and about the promise she made to her friend Bean before she left for the summer.

Now Kayla's coming home for her senior year. If Kayla keeps quiet, she might be able to get her old life back. If she tells the truth, she risks losing everything—and everyone—she ever cared about.

Thoughts: When I think about it, Every Last Promise is forgettable. It's a book that focuses on a very sensitive subject but falls flat with characters that are either...boring or horrible. I couldn't connect with any of them and I spent most of the book wondering when we were going to find out "the secret" that is pretty obvious from the beginning and practically given away in the blurb.

I stuck through it to the end but was unimpressed with the author's writing or the characters, and really wished I hadn't been because it sounded so promising.

Review | The Merciless by Danielle Vega

Title: The Merciless by Danielle Vega
Series: The Merciless #1
Genre: YA - Horror
Publication: June 12th 2014 by Razorbill
Format: Hardcover
Source: Purchased
Rating: ★★☆☆☆

Synopsis: Forgive us, Father, for we have sinned

Brooklyn Stevens sits in a pool of her own blood, tied up and gagged. No one outside of these dank basement walls knows she’s here. No one can hear her scream.

Sofia Flores knows she shouldn’t have gotten involved. When she befriended Riley, Grace, and Alexis on her first day at school, she admired them, with their perfect hair and their good-girl ways. They said they wanted to save Brooklyn. They wanted to help her. Sofia didn’t realize they believed Brooklyn was possessed.

Now, Riley and the girls are performing an exorcism on Brooklyn—but their idea of an exorcism is closer to torture than salvation. All Sofia wants is to get out of this house. But there is no way out. Sofia can’t go against the other girls . . . unless she wants to be next. . . .

In this chilling debut, Danielle Vega delivers blood-curdling suspense and terror on every page. By the shockingly twisted end, readers will be faced with the most haunting question of all: Is there evil in all of us?

Thoughts: I think if The Merciless was like the last 20 or so pages, it would've really been a horror novel. I guess it really depends on what scares people though. It seemed to want to shock readers more than terrify them and it left me feeling a little disappointed. Yes, it was bloody and gory and cruel, but no it wasn't exactly scary or creepy.

The book introduces the characters in a somewhat rushed way, and I never really connected and got a feel for them before the real gore begins. That's mostly what it is. It's Mean Girls gone psycho killers and there are really so many similarities between the girls in The Merciless and the ones in Mean Girls that I snickered a few times while reading the first 200 or so pages of this book.

In the end, there's a twist that left me wondering...what the hell happened?

Review + Giveaway | November 9 by Colleen Hoover

Title: November 9 by Colleen Hoover
Series: N/A
Genre: New Adult - Contemporary/Romance
Publication: November 10th 2015 by Atria Books
Format: eARC
Source: Tour | Netgalley
Rating: ★★★★★

Synopsis: Fallon meets Ben, an aspiring novelist, the day before her scheduled cross-country move. Their untimely attraction leads them to spend Fallon’s last day in L.A. together, and her eventful life becomes the creative inspiration Ben has always sought for his novel. Over time and amidst the various relationships and tribulations of their own separate lives, they continue to meet on the same date every year. Until one day Fallon becomes unsure if Ben has been telling her the truth or fabricating a perfect reality for the sake of the ultimate plot twist.

Thoughts: When you choose to stay up past your bedtime, that's when you know it's real. I haven't wanted or even considered staying up late in a long time for a book, but November 9 made me feel all the feels I hadn't felt in a long time. I kept seeing reviews left and right about how amazing this book was, but of course from experience, that's usually when you know a book is too good to be true and are left disappointed.

Fortunately, that wasn't the case with November 9. This book pulled and broke my heart, made me laugh out loud and cry in my bed at night while I held on to it tight. I loved both Fallon and Ben, loved how they were together, and really was just rooting for them the whole time.

This was my first Hoover book and I can't express enough how excited I am to read more of her books. This book really kicked me out of the reading slump I was in and I can't say enough how amazing it is. I definitely recommend it to romance lovers, NA readers and contemporary fans alike. This is one you can't miss!

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Review | Very in Pieces by Megan Frazer Blakemore

Title: Very in Pieces by Megan Frazer Blackmore
Series: N/A
Genre: YA - Contemporary
Publication: September 29th 2015 by HarperTeen
Format: eARC
Source: Netgalley
Rating: ★☆☆☆☆

Synopsis: Very Sales-Woodruff is done being a good girl. Done being the only responsible one in a family that’s unraveling. Done being the obliging girlfriend in a relationship that’s sinking. Done saying no to what she wants—like Dominic, her rebellious classmate.

With her mom’s drinking, her dad’s extended absences from home, and her younger sister, Ramona, running wild, the path Very has always seen for herself doesn’t seem to matter anymore. At the same time, Very’s grandmother, a poet known less for her work and more for her exploits with the likes of Andy Warhol and Arthur Miller, is slipping away.

If everything else can fall to pieces, why can’t she?

Thoughts: This was one of those books I was very 'meh' about. I didn't like the characters, the plot, or anything at all actually. I don't even know how I got through it. I found Very to be a very boring character, even when she goes a little rebellious. There was nothing special about Dominic, her "relationship" with him and I didn't get why they even liked each other.

Honestly, Very in Pieces was disappointing and I wish I hadn't pushed through to finish it because I never felt like it got better or that I enjoyed it more.