New Release or Older Books?

Hey guys.

I have a question for everyone. 

Are you more apt to grab a book that's been out for a while? 
Or are you going to run out and grab a new release? 

Jessica has long been a fan of Colleen Hoover and I thought about picking up one of her books.  Why not, right? 

At the same time, I thought it would be fun to throw the question out there. 

~ Jillian

10 Blind Dates by Ashely Elston- Reshelved Books

To quote The Bubble Guppies "What time is it?" It's time for a new review!

For some reason that is a little lost on me, holiday themed books come out in October... The library has been getting these holiday books this month and when I went to Barnes and Noble a few weeks ago, I was seeing them as new releases. 

Link to cover

10 Blind Dates is a fun and quirky YA book that is centered around the holidays!  The title wouldn't make you think about that but the cover art definitely does (once you notice the little ball of mistletoe).   This book also came out this month.  

Elston definitely was channeling quirkiness when she wrote this book.  Sophie is 17 years old, she's a high school senior, she's able to become an aunt!  She also is about to spend the next 2 weeks of her holiday break with her family three hours away.   Keep in mind, that this is family that Sophie feels she's grown away from in recent years.  As a result, Sophie decided that she wasn't going to stay with her family for as long.  She decided that she was going to stay home and then this way, she would be ale to spend time with Griffin, her boyfriend.

The night that her parents leave, is the night that Sophie decided she's going to tell Griffin the good news.  Sophie goes to a party to see and talk to Griffin when she overhears that Griffin doesn't find her to be fun anymore and that maybe, they should go on a break. 

WELL. 

Sophie gets upset and leaves the party.  Totally understandable! 

Now, this is where the quirkiness comes in.  After arriving at her grandparents house and telling Nonna what had happened and then sleeping on it for a night, Sophie wakes up to a surprise.  Nonna is going to set Sophie up on 2 weeks worth of dates!  Which would be a date every day that Sophie was there.  Different family members would set Sophie up a different dates with different boys. 

Think of it as speed dating. 

The idea is that all of these dates are going to help Sophie get over Griffin.

Will they work? Well.  You're just going to have to see for yourself! 

I'm going to give this book 4 coffee beans out of 5. 

~ Jillian

After We Break by Katy Regnery- Reshelved Books

Hellooooooo!!

Sorry, I've been MIA for a while.  Life sort of has a way of sneaking in on us when we least expect it. Plus most titles I had read of late, didn't do anything for me.  I thought that most of them were blah. 


Have no fear though as I have found books that I liked and those are the ones that I have been reading. 

Case and point: After We Break by Katy Regnery.

It's no secret that I enjoy the books that Regnery writes. 
I snagged a copy of this read in hopes of reviewing it. 

I found this book to be a quick read.  Now, this might be because I read it as an E-book.

This story was a complicated one.  Violet and Zach are now in their late 20s.  They graduated from college, Violet went to Yale and Zach went to Julliard.  
Violet on to write a popular novel and Zach is writing chart topping hits for bands.  
In a bizarre turn of events, Violet and Zach find themselves with each other. 

As the reader, we get to see how Violet and Z (or Vile and Z) heal and move forward. 

There was certainly a fair share of drama in this book.  There was a lot that was going on, not necessarily just between the two.  Zach's life was very involved, we got to see how his career played out (more so than Violet's career as an author). 

What was cool, was that the reader got to see how the two of them worked together to write a few songs. 

This book for me was blah.  Which is hard for me to say given that I really like Katy Regnery's books! 

I found Violet to be a bit difficult and not so easy to forgive Zach.  It wasn't like he cheated on her or anything.  He just didn't handle the situation well and really, you can't fault a 18-19 year old guy for that.  
Even after she learned of his background story, she was still a little hesitant to forgive.

For me, After We Break was a kind of a dud...

I sadly am giving it 3.5 coffee beans out of 5...

~ Jillian

Single in Sitka by Katy Regnery - Reshelved Books

Raise your hand if you're ready for a new review!
Raise your other hand if you're ready for a new review on a book that's newly released!

Now wave those arms if you're ready to read about Katy Regnery's new book Single in Sitka!!

Single in Sitka is the first book in her Odds-Are-Good Romance series.  It seems that all of the books that are in this series, will be standalone books.  The common theme, from what I've gathered based on the cover art and the titles, would be that these books all take place in Alaska. 

Singe in Sitka was featured in the anthology One Hot Summer (You can find my review of that book here).  Which is how I got to read the first 10 chapters of the book.  My plan was to buy the book when it came out earlier this week.  Lucky for me! I was able to snag a ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. 

It's no secret that I've enjoyed every one of the Katy Regnery books that I have read to date.  (I actually am working on a review of After We Break).

As I digress. 

Single in Sitka tells the story of Alaskan State Trooper Luke Kingston and Seattle Sentinel columnist Amanda McKendrick.  Amanda has just broken up with her long term boyfriend, Bryce and Luke tragically lost his wife, Wendy, in an accident a couple years prior.  Amanda found Luke's dating profile in a singles website.  In a bold move, Amanda and her best friend Leigh, decide that Amanda needs to go to Sitka, Alaska to meet with Luke. 

Little does she know that this meet up is going to change her life forever.  But maybe the change will be in a good way. 

What I liked about this book was that it was more than just romance.  There was another part to this story.  Luke is a widower and he has 3 children; who are between the ages of 13 and 5.

Regnery makes sure to tell a story that is more than just being about Amanda and Luke; it's a story that brings to light her relationship with Chad and Gillian and Meghan.  I liked this and felt like it was an important thing.

I honestly enjoyed this book.  I'm excited to see what of this series holds. 

My rating: 5 coffee beans out of 5. 

~ Jillian

Mustaches for Maddie by Chad Morris and Shelly Brown - Reshelved Books

Hello Dewey Readers!

About two years ago a co-worker suggested that I read Mustaches for Maddie by Chad Morris and Shelly Brown.  It took me this long to finally pick it up, but I'm so glad I finally did.  Mustaches for Maddie is based off what Chad and Shelly's daughter had gone through when faced with a health crisis at a young age.  

A bit about the book.  Maddie is your average twelve year old girl.  She loves to use her

imagination, she has a decent group of friends, and she has a loving family, but lately Maddie has been holding her arm funny.  It is not enough to really bother Maddie, but it is happening enough so that other people are starting to notice it.  When Maddie's mom questions why she's holding her arm oddly, she decides to call the doctor who sends her for testing right away.  They soon learn that Maddie has a brain tumor.  

This book is in line with books like Wonder, and is also a theme that a lot of y.a. and middle grade books are leaning towards- books about illness.  It tackles not only the fear of the illness and of dying itself, but also the struggle of friendship, of fitting in, and of worrying what others will think when they're told.  Ultimately, it's a moving and heartfelt read that I did not want to put down. I recommend this to book to all ages middle grade through adult and give it a For the Love of Dewey rating of 5 out of 5 coffee beans.

Until the next read!
~Jessica