Sophie Reads YA: January 2020

January Summary

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What I've read this month:

Queen of Air and Darkness
Series: The Dark Artifices #3
Author: Cassandra Clare
Published December 4th 2018 by Simon & Schuster Children's UK
Read: December 31 2019-January 5 2020
My Rating: 4 Stars
Challenge: 2020 Beat the Backlist Challenge

A Heart So Fierce and Broken
Series: Cursebreakers #2
Author: Brigid Kemmerer
Published January 7th 2020 by Bloomsbury YA
Read: January 6-9 2020
My Rating: 4 Stars
Challenge: 2020 New Release Challenge

The Perfectly Imperfect Match
Series: Suttonville Sentinels #3
Author: Kendra C. Highley
Published July 10th 2017 by Entangled Teen (Crush) (eARC)
Read: January 6-9 2020
My Rating: 4 Stars
Challenge: 2020 Beat the Backlist Challenge, 2020 Contemporary Romance Challenge

10 Blind Dates
Series: None
Author: Ashley Elston
Published November 14th 2019 by Macmillan Children's Books
Read: January 10-11 2020
My Rating: 4 Stars
Challenge: 2020 Beat the Backlist Challenge, 2020 Contemporary Romance Challenge

Listen to Your Heart
Series: None
Author: Kasie West
Published May 28th 2019 by Point
Read: January 12 2020
My Rating: 4 Stars
Challenge: 2020 Beat the Backlist Challenge, 2020 Contemporary Romance Challenge

The Cruel Prince
Series: The Folk of the Air #1
Author: Holly Black
Published January 2nd 2018 by Hot Key Books
Read: January 12-15 2020
My Rating: 4 Stars
Challenge: 2020 Beat the Backlist Challenge

The Wicked King
Series: The Folk of the Air #2
Author: Holly Black
Published January 8th 2019 by Hot Key Books
Read: January 15-16 2020
My Rating: 4 Stars
Challenge: 2020 Beat the Backlist Challenge

By the Book
Series: None
Author: Amanda Sellet
Published May 12th 2020 by HMH Books for Young Readers (eARC)
Read: January 18 2020
My Rating: 5 Stars
Challenge: 2020 New Release Challenge, 2020 Contemporary Romance Challenge

To Have and to Hoax
Series: The Regency Vows #1
Author: Martha Waters
Published April 7th 2020 by Atria Books (ARC)
Read: January 18-19 2020
My Rating: 4 Stars
Challenge: 2020 New Release Challenge

The Upside of Falling
Series: None
Author: Alex Light
Published February 18th 2020 by HarperTeen (ARC)
Read: January 20-22 2020
My Rating: 4 Stars
Challenge: 2020 New Release Challenge, 2020 Contemporary Romance Challenge

The Queen of Nothing
Series: The Folk of the Air #3
Author: Holly Black
Published November 19th 2019 by Hot Key Books
Read: January 25 2020
My Rating: 4 Stars
Challenge: 2020 Beat the Backlist Challenge

Raised by Wolves
Series: Raised by Wolves #1
Author: Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Published September 30th 2010 by Quercus Publishing
Read: January 26-28 2020
My Rating: 4 Stars
Challenge: 2020 Beat the Backlist Challenge

Challenges Update:
2020 Contemporary Romance Challenge: 5 (5 total)
2020 New Release Challenge: 4 (4 total)
2020 Beat the Backlist Challenge: 8 (8 total)

Summary:

This month has been such a good reading month. All the books I've read have been wonderful, and I'm surprised with how much I've read too. Hopefully this will be a sign for the rest of the year too!

How have you done this month? Let me know below.

#RockMyTBR 2017 Challenge

Review: Romancing the Throne by Nadine Jolie Courtney

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Romancing the Throne
Series: None
Author: Nadine Jolie Courtney
Published May 30th 2017 by Katherine Tegen Books

Goodreads Synopsis
For the first time ever, the Weston sisters are at the same boarding school. After an administration scandal at Libby’s all-girls school threatens her chances at a top university, she decides to join Charlotte at posh and picturesque Sussex Park. Social-climbing Charlotte considers it her sisterly duty to bring Libby into her circle: Britain’s young elites, glamorous teens who vacation in Hong Kong and the South of France and are just as comfortable at a polo match as they are at a party.

It’s a social circle that just so happens to include handsome seventeen-year-old Prince Edward, heir to Britain’s throne.

If there are any rules of sisterhood, “Don’t fall for the same guy” should be one of them. But sometimes chemistry—even love—grows where you least expect it. In the end, there may be a price to pay for romancing the throne...and more than one path to happily ever after.
Goodreads

Review
This book was immediately on my radar as soon as the first mention of it was had on Twitter. As you might know, a book with some form of royalty in it is bound to be one I want, so I preordered this book as soon as I could, and waiting quite impatiently for my copy to arrive.

In Romancing the Throne, we have two sisters, Libby and Charlotte, who are attending a glamorous English boarding school, that the Crown Prince of England, Edward, also attends. Both sisters are nothing like one another. Libby, the oldest, is quiet and a bit shy, whereas Charlotte is always the centre of attention, and part of an elite group of British teens. Lotte sees it as her duty to bring Libby out of her shell, and incorporate her in her friendship group, but that soon brings Libby into Edward's radar, and because both are so alike, they end up falling for one another. However, Lotte has decided from day 1 that her goal in life is to marry Edward, and even if Libby is her sister, she won't let that get in the way.

This book could've been so good, but, it wasn't. Lotte was a dreadful main character, who made me want to DNF the book neigh on every few pages - if I'm being honest, I don't know why I didn't. Libby was someone I probably could've related to more, and if the book had been in her PoV, I likely would've given the book a higher rating. Because their family is 'new money', middle class, Lotte sees this as an issue, and needs to shake off the stigma (a la Caroline Bingley in P&P). So, she surrounds herself with the well to do, trying to fit in, and she doesn't, partly due to her family, but mainly due to her crassness. All she cares about is marrying well, and the best marriage she could make is Edward. She doesn't even really like him, though, only likes his title, and there was just no chemistry between them. Whenever Edward was busy, dealing with being a working Royal, or other family obligations, she would just complain, not what a good Princess or Queen should do. Libby and Edward were such a good fit, and she would be the perfect companion for Edward, which quickly becomes apparent.

My main issue with the book is that it's dead clear that the author is American, as even though it's completely set in England, with English characters, nothing about it felt authentic. Sometimes, I wish authors wouldn't write about England or Britain without actually doing some research, and not just expecting everything to be the same as in America.

All in all, Lotte was awful, Libby a sweetheart, and this book could've done well, but ultimately failed.

Dates Read:

June 27-July 10, 2017

Rating
3 Stars

Emma Lord

Waiting On Wednesday: Tweet Cute by Emma Lord

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Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's pick is:

Tweet Cute
Series: None
Author: Emma Lord
Published January 21st 2020 by Wednesday Books

Goodreads Summary
A fresh, irresistible rom-com from debut author Emma Lord about the chances we take, the paths life can lead us on, and how love can be found in the opposite place you expected.

Meet Pepper, swim team captain, chronic overachiever, and all-around perfectionist. Her family may be falling apart, but their massive fast-food chain is booming ― mainly thanks to Pepper, who is barely managing to juggle real life while secretly running Big League Burger’s massive Twitter account.

Enter Jack, class clown and constant thorn in Pepper’s side. When he isn’t trying to duck out of his obscenely popular twin’s shadow, he’s busy working in his family’s deli. His relationship with the business that holds his future might be love/hate, but when Big League Burger steals his grandma’s iconic grilled cheese recipe, he’ll do whatever it takes to take them down, one tweet at a time.

All’s fair in love and cheese ― that is, until Pepper and Jack’s spat turns into a viral Twitter war. Little do they know, while they’re publicly duking it out with snarky memes and retweet battles, they’re also falling for each other in real life ― on an anonymous chat app Jack built.

As their relationship deepens and their online shenanigans escalate ― people on the internet are shipping them?? ― their battle gets more and more personal, until even these two rivals can’t ignore they were destined for the most unexpected, awkward, all-the-feels romance that neither of them expected.

Goodreads

Why I'm waiting:

This book was just utter perfection, and I need more people to have read it so I can scream about it!

Read my review, here!

Are you waiting for this book? Have you already read it? Let me know :)

2020 Beat the Backlist challenge

ARC Review: The Perfectly Imperfect Match (Suttonville Sentinels #3) by Kendra C. Highley

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The Perfectly Imperfect Match
Series: Suttonville Sentinels #3
Author: Kendra C. Highley
Published July 10th 2017 by Entangled Teen (Crush)

Goodreads Synopsis
Pitcher Dylan Dennings has his future all mapped out: make the minors straight out of high school, work his way up the farm system, and get called up to the majors by the time he’s twenty-three. The Plan has been his sole focus for years, and if making his dreams come true means instituting a strict “no girls” policy, so be it.

Lucy Foster, needlepoint ninja, big sister to an aspiring pitcher, and chicken advocate, likes a little mayhem. So what if she gets lost taking her brother to baseball camp…at her own high school? The pitching coach, some hotshot high school player, obviously thinks she’s a hot mess. Too bad he’s cute, because he’s so not her type.

Problem is, they keep running into each other, and every interaction sparks hotter than the last. But with Dylan’s future on the line, he has to decide whether some rules are made to be broken…

Disclaimer: This book contains a crazy night of moonlit skinny-dipping, a combustible crush, and kisses swoony enough to unwind even the most Type A athlete.
Goodreads

Review
I received an Advance Reader Copy from the author via NetGalley. This in no way impacted on my view.

I've been blitzing through this series again when I realised I hadn't finished the last book, and I've rediscovered my love of contemporary, especially the ones that Entangled publish.

This time around, we have the story of Dylan, who we saw in the previous book, Swinging at Love. Last time we saw him, he was coming to terms with the fact that the girl he had had a crush on was Alyssa, who his best friend, Tristan, is now dating. He's decided that dating just isn't for him, not right now when he needs to focus on his future, and get himself in the best shape to impress scouts and hopefully get signed with a baseball team. Over the summer, he's leading a summer camp, coaching youngsters in pitching, both to keep him occupied and in shape, and also to look good to anyone who might be looking, whether that be other teams, or colleges like his parents want.

Lucy is the polar opposite to Dylan. She's more carefree in her life, tries not to take everything serious, and likes to find the fun in life. Working in her mam's craft store, creating her own pieces that aren't conventional, help her pass the time over the summer, and forget how sad she's feeling that her dad is stationed abroad, and has been the past few months. When her mam ropes her into taking her younger brother, Otis, to and from summer baseball camp, she finds herself getting closer to Dylan, and opposites attract.

Obviously, not everything can be perfect, and there's stormy weather ahead. Being different might work, but it might also be the very thing that will cause them to fall apart. And how about Otis' hero worship of Dylan? Will that cause them to have issues in their behaviour.

I still think that the first book in this series was my favourite, but I definitely enjoyed this one. Both Dylan and Lucy were good and reliable narrators, with funny sides, and serious sides, and they felt like real people. I could definitely relate to both of them at times: with Dylan about being so serious about the future, and with Lucy having a dad in the military. I could see the chemistry between them from the first time they met, which wasn't quite the perfect first meeting, but I was rooting for them. Having the angst done in the way that it was, was the perfect way that Kendra could've written this story, and now that I've read all three books in the Suttonville Sentinels series, I'm looking forward to more from her in future.

Dates Read:
January 6-9, 2020

Rating
4 Stars

January

Stacking the Shelves: January 25th 2020

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2019 Contemporary Romance Challenge

Review: Her Royal Highness (Royals #2) by Rachel Hawkins

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Her Royal Highness
Series: Royals #2
Author: Rachel Hawkins
Published May 7th 2019 by G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers

Goodreads Synopsis
Millie Quint is devastated when she discovers that her sort-of-best friend/sort-of-girlfriend has been kissing someone else. And because Millie cannot stand the thought of confronting her ex every day, she decides to apply for scholarships to boarding schools . . . the farther from Houston the better.

Millie can't believe her luck when she's accepted into one of the world's most exclusive schools, located in the rolling highlands of Scotland. Everything about Scotland is different: the country is misty and green; the school is gorgeous, and the students think Americans are cute.

The only problem: Mille's roommate Flora is a total princess.

She's also an actual princess. Of Scotland.

At first, the girls can barely stand each other--Flora is both high-class and high-key--but before Millie knows it, she has another sort-of-best-friend/sort-of-girlfriend. Even though Princess Flora could be a new chapter in her love life, Millie knows the chances of happily ever afters are slim . . . after all, real life isn't a fairy tale . . . or is it?
Goodreads

Review
Royals was one of my favourite books of 2018, and even though Scholastic decided not to publish book 2, Her Royal Highness, in the UK, I knew I needed to read it, so ordered a copy online. And I'm so glad I did, because though I still prefer Royals over this one, I loved Her Royal Highness, and would've so been missing out if I hadn't bought it.

Millie has been in a relationship with her best friend and girlfriend for quite some time, yet her girlfriend has been wanting to keep them a secret, and Millie doesn't understand why. When she eventually finds out that her now ex-best friend has been kissing other people, she decides on a change of scenery and applies for loads of different schools and scholarships, all across the world, and is astonished to discover she has been accepted to one of the most prestigious schools in Scotland, one that royalty have even attended, including the currently enrolled Princess Flora of the Scottish royal family. Even more astounding is the fact that Millie and Flora are roommates, but it's not a match made in heaven. Flora is a total bitch - she doesn't want to be at the school, and is in need of attention. She thinks that if she kicks up enough fuss, and picking on her new, American, roommate is a good start, she will be expelled and taken back home to the family. However, the Queen has made it clear that Flora will be at the school, no matter what, and Millie isn't taking any of her crap either. As they grew together, facing a common enemy - the school - Millie and Flora soon realise that it's not hatred towards each other that they feel, but something that could be even more problematic.

I really did like both of the main characters, Flora, more so than Millie. Their backstories were well fleshed out, and the plot to this story, though some might not think there was much to it, was actually really well done. If you've seen the Netflix series, The Crown, think of the school, Gordonstoun, that Prince Charles is sent to in series 2. The school in this book is very similar, with one of the main plot points being a expedition in the Scottish wilderness that Flora and Millie have to find their way home from. Millie is such an intelligent character, with a love of geology, and though Flora seems to not be clever, she definitely is, but has been hiding it for so long, being left alone in the limelight of her two, more 'spectacular' brothers. Throughout the course of this book, Flora definitely seemed to grow into her personality, and accept her own sexuality.

Millie and Flora's relationship was such fun to read too. It's the classic trope, of enemies to lovers, and it's definitely believable. To start of with, neither can really stand the other, even if they're not proper 'enemies'. As they're put in more and more situations, they get over their preconceptions, and understand that they're very much alike, apart from the whole Princess situation. Because of this, they fall for each other easily, and I found it all so cute. The only negative I could pick up from the book was the ending - I found it a bit abrupt, but that's an issue I had with a lot of contemporary books these days. I hope beyond all hope that we get a book 3, because I need to see Sebastian's story!

Dates Read:

June 7-8, 2019

Rating
5 Stars

Echoes Between Us

Waiting On Wednesday: Echoes Between Us by Katie McGarry

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3 Stars

ARC Review: Trouble Makes a Comeback (Trouble #2) by Stephanie Tromly

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Trouble Makes a Comeback
Series: Trouble #2
Author: Stephanie Tromly
Published December 1st 2016 by Hot Key Books

Goodreads Synopsis
A whip-smart, screwball noir mystery—with snappy prose, wry humor, and breakneck dialogue—this sequel to Trouble Is a Friend of Mine is perfect for fans of Veronica Mars, Sherlock, John Hughes, and Carl Hiassen.

After a fall semester of fiascos: getting arrested, then kidnapped, then blown up in an explosion (all thanks to the weird but brilliant Philip Digby), Zoe Webster is looking forward to a quiet spring. Now that Digby has left town, she's finally built a regular high school life for herself. She's dating Miles, the alternate QB; she knows girls she considers friends; she's learning to enjoy being normal and semi-popular. Which of course is when Digby comes back: He's got a new lead on his missing sister and he needs Zoe's help.

Suddenly Zoe is tussling with a billionaire arch-villain, locking horns with armed goons, and digging into what makes the Digby family tick, even as she tries to navigate the confusing and emotionally fraught world of high school politics and locker-room drama. After all, it's hard to explain Digby to a boy like Miles, especially when Zoe isn't sure how she feels about Digby herself—or how he feels about her.

Now that Digby's back, get ready for another hilarious whodunit filled with razor-sharp dialogue, ridiculously funny action, and the most charismatic, dynamic duo you've ever met. And just try to stay out of trouble.

We dare you.
Goodreads

Review
I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher via NetGalley. This in no way impacted on my view.

Like I said in my review of book 1, I wasn't that impressed with the execution of the story, nor the characters, but as I had been approved for an ARC of the sequel, I decided I had to read Trouble Makes a Comeback, and I think I'm glad I did, as I preferred this one to book 1.

I'm not going to write a long review this time, especially seeing as it's been 3 years since I read it, but the dynamic between Zoe and Digby had definitely improved, and I found myself believing in their relationship and their characterisations. Zoe's dating a new guy, which does lead to a love triangle, but he was really more of a stand in for Digby, and there to add some tension to the story as a plot device. Yes, there was more humour in this book, but it was also a bit darker than previous books, with the story taking the turn of looking into Digby's sister's disappearance more. Yeah, I won't be reading book 3, but I am glad that I did read this, if not only to get a bit of closure.

Dates Read:
November 17-19, 2016

Rating
3 Stars

January

Stacking the Shelves: January 18th 2020

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3 Stars

Review: Trouble is a Friend of Mine (Trouble #1) by Stephanie Tromly

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Trouble is a Friend of Mine
Series: Trouble #1
Author: Stephanie Tromly
Published August 6th 2015 by Hot Key Books

Goodreads Synopsis
Sherlock meets The Breakfast Club in this story of a wisecracking girl who meets a weird but brilliant boy and their roller-coaster of a semester that's one part awkward, three parts thrilling, and five parts awesome

After her parents get divorced, high school junior Zoe Webster moves with her mother from Brooklyn to upstate New York, determined to get back to the city and transfer to the elite private school her father insists on. But then she meets Philip Digby--the odd and brilliant and somehow attractive?--Digby, and soon finds herself in a series of hilarious and dangerous situations all centered on his search for the kidnapper of a local teenage girl who may know something about the tragic disappearance of his kid sister eight years ago. Before she knows it, Zoe has vandalized an office complex with fake snow, pretended to buy drugs alongside a handsome football star dressed like the Hulk, had a serious throw down with a possible religious cult, challenged her controlling father, and, oh yeah, saved her new hometown.

For fans of John Green and David Levithan, this is a crime novel where catching the crook isn't the only hook, a romance where the leading man is decidedly unromantic, a friendship story where they aren't even sure they like each other, and a debut you won't soon forget.
Goodreads

Review
I hadn't heard of this book series until I saw book two on NetGalley and decided to get a hold of book 1 and give it a try. The comparisons with Sherlock Holmes drew me in, especially, back in 2016 when the BBC Sherlock was so popular, and I was hoping this would be everything I wanted from a Sherlockesque YA, but, unfortunately, I found it lacking.

Zoe, our main character, moves to a new school, where she meets the strange and mysterious Digby, who is in the middle of solving the disappearance of a local girl, in a situation very reminiscent to his own sister's disappearance. Zoe finds herself entangled in the case, and somehow falling for Digby?

Honestly, I can't remember all that much about this book. It was 3 years ago, and wasn't that memorable to start off with. All I do remember is that Digby creeped me out, and he was rude and ignorant. Yeah, the synopsis says he's not a romantic leading man, but he really isn't. Zoe, on the other hand, I can't remember anything about her, so I just think while this book had a good premise, it wasn't well executed. Yes, I did read book 2, as I had an ARC of it, but if that hadn't been the case, I probably wouldn't have bothered.

Dates Read:
November 14-17, 2016

Rating
3 Stars