Goodbye Summer!

Summer is slowly drawing to a close! We are currently experiencing the last of the summer sun here in the UK but I've no doubt that once September is over the rain will set in and cozy nights in reading will be back!

I've decided to dedicate the next 9 days to 'goodbye to Summer' mini feature to help myself transition into Autumn mode!

What to Expect?

• Summer Bingo Wrap Up.
• Summer reviews such as Nantucket Red
• Autumn TBR
• Travel post
• and maybe an Autumn Bingo Challenge......

So I hope you enjoy the last of the summer days and my summery posts!
Much Love!
Lettie
Xxx

Fantasy Flashback Friday: Tamora Pierce

A look back at my pre blog fantasy author favourites!

 

One of my 2014 resolutions was to create more features and blog more about pre blog books. This feature will encompass both those goals!  I have been a huge fantasy fan ever since Enid Blyton convince me a chair could fly and grant wishes. I plan to feature a different author each post and give brief reviews of their books. First author is: Tamora Pierce!
 

How?

I was sent to my school library to pick a book for reading tutor as I'd forgot mine and just picked Wild Magic off the shelf! I quickly sped through The Immortals series and the rest is history!

Why?

Tamora is a talented world builder. Her novels are either set in Tortall or Emelan these worlds are completely different to each other from magic and Gods to basic social structure and within these worlds all the different countries are unique with different backgrounds and cultures. The attention to detail is phenomenal. World building aside, her characters are always well written and unique , her female characters in particular are very confident and independent. Tamora isn't afraid to confront bigger issues within her books, they contain LGBT characters, domestic abuse storylines, bullying, contraception and safe sex. Above all Tamora keeps her books and characters true to the time period she has set them in making them easy to read.
 

Book Breakdown

There will be two Tamora Pierce posts, This first one is going to focus on Tortall books, I've included the decade each series was published in as the Tortall books have spanned three decades. I am keeping this spoiler free where I can, obviously Daughter of the Lioness will give away some spoilers for Song of the Lioness though!
 
Song of the Lioness: published in the 1980s.
Goodreads summary: the Song of the Lioness quartet is the adventurous story of one girl's journey to overcome the obstacles facing her, become a valiant knight, and save Tortall from conquest. Alanna douses her female identity to begin her training in Alanna: The First Adventure, and when she gains squire status in In the Hand of the Goddess, her growing abilities make her a few friends -- and many enemies. Books 3 and 4 complete Alanna's adventure and secure her legend, with the new knight errant taking on desert tribesmen in The Woman Who Rides like a Man and seeking out the powerful Dominion Jewel in Lioness Rampant. 
SoTL spans a long period of Alanna's life so you can see how she gets through knight training and then out in the 'real' world which
Favourite book: This is a hard one! I think The Woman Who Rides Like A Man because it features the Bloody Hawk tribe and they were so interesting!
Favourite characters: Jon, I loved Jon, he was strong and fair but fun. George, King of thieves, the 'bad' boy of the series. Faithful, witty and snarky, exactly how you would expect a cat to be. To be honest I loved all the characters but I had to narrow it down.
Favourite element: Alanna's love life involves more than one guy and not in a love triangle but a realistic progression as she grows up. Alanna's determination to do things she's not allowed to or that are deemed impossible.
 
The Immortals: published in the 1990s
 Goodreads summary: The story of Veralidaine Sarrasri (known as Daine), a parentless girl with an extraordinary talent. Daine finds a job that takes her and her pet Cloud from her home country of Galla to the kingdom of Tortall where she finds a new life and a new family, and learns that she has the magical ability known as "Wild Magic," which enables her to speak to animals, heal them, and take their shape as well as bend them to her will. She makes new friends with creatures, including the black-robe mage Numair Salmalin, a young dragon named Skysong (nicknamed Kitten), the lioness
Favourite book: Emperor Mage because it mostly takes place in Carthak!
Favourite characters: Numair, who doesn't love a talented attractive mage? Kaddar, I absolutely loved Kaddar. He reminded me of Jon and I loved how well he adapted to living under his Uncle's rule while retaining his own views. I really want to see more of him. Rikash, I loved his wit and his relationship with Daine.
Favourite element: Wild magic, I loved this concept and how it developed throughout the series.

The Protector of the Small: published in the early 2000s. 
Wikipedia summary: The story features Keladry of Mindelan, the first girl to follow in Alanna's footsteps—legally and without disguise, after a law is passed allowing girls to try for knighthood. As she begins her training, Kel is constantly harassed, injured, plagued by doubters and put on probation by her training master, who thinks a girl will never succeed. Kel discovers the hazing of young pages and fights the bullies to put a stop to it. Kel makes memorable friends throughout the series, including the wry Nealan of Queenscove, and also Lord Raoul of Goldenlake, an old friend of Alanna's. She meets some key enemies, including Joren of Stone Mountain, her fellow page. The series follows Kel's training and the first year of her knighthood, a timespan of nine years.
Favourite book: Squire, I loved Kel's Knight master and all the developments as it spanned a long period.
Favourite characters:
Favourite element: Kel doesn't have any magical abilities or influential friends to start with, she's just an ordinary girl who wants to be a knight. I love that Tamora didn't make her 'the next Alanna'.

Daughter of the Lioness/Trickster's: Published early 2000s.
Wikipedia summary: The story of Alianne (Aly) of Pirate's Swoop, the 16-year-old daughter of the legendary Alanna the Lioness. Disallowed work as a Tortallan spy by her parents, Aly leaves home only to be captured by pirates and sold into slavery in the Copper Isles. Under the guidance of Kyprioth, the god of tricksters, Aly involves herself with a conspiracy of the native raka people against their luarin conquerors, in accordance with a prophecy made by Kyprioth himself through one of his priestesses, centuries earlier.
Favourite book: I'll be honest I never really clicked with this duet, I was so excited for it I badgered my technology inept Mum to make an amazon account so I could buy it but I just couldn't get into it!
Favourite characters: Nawat! I loved his backstory and his personality.
Favourite element: The Copper Isles it was great to explore a different country.
 
Beka Cooper/Provost's Dog: published late 2000s.
Wikipedia summary:The series is a prequel  two hundred years earlier. It details the adventures of Beka Cooper, a sixteen-year-old recruit of the Lord Provost, originally from a
lower city family and now in service to the Provost's Guard. This series is told from a diary-style first person perspective. Beka's entries detail how hard she works to try to make her home, the Lower City of Corus, safer. Beka's roots in the Lower City give her both a keen insight and a sense of empathy for the people she is there to protect.Favourite book: Terrier, I loved the mystery, the setting up of this medieval Tortall and the characters.
Favourite characters: Definitely Rosto! He reminded me of George

Final Thoughts

What I love most about Tamora Pierce is that despite the decades separating her series her characters remain relevant and that all their stories despite the different lifestyles/cultures are inspiring to readers. I love that the protagonists are all unique with different motives. I also love how well crafted and layered the Tortall.

Are you a Tamora Pierce fan? What's your favourite Tortall book?
Much Love!
Lettie
Xxx

Interview: Fisher Amelie

I've been a fan of Fisher Amelie since I read Thomas and January almost a year ago! So I'm thrilled to have her here for a feature day! First up an interview!

 

About Fisher Amelie.

Where were you born?
I was born in Wichita, Kansas on a farm with my aunt and uncle. I’d often help out, typically in the pigsties. This one time, sheesh, I was balancing myself as I walked across the pigsty fence line and fell in.  Wait a minute…Only the Wichita part of that was true. Though, I do own a pair of sparkly red pumps. Haayaay! Anyway, I was born in Wichita but left at the tender age of five for the world of Larry Hagman, sans the drama. Basically, the ‘burbs of Dallas.
Where do you call home?
I live in my head but I reside in Dallas still. I have a pretty little family of my own now and I’d say they were my home.
Is writing your full-time Career?
Writing is my full time career. I dig it, a lot. It’s, like, my favourite thing to do in the entire world. I get giddy butterflies when I sit at a blank screen. It’s such a high.
Essentially I have two full time jobs, though. I’ve got kids so all you mama’s out there know where I’m coming from on this.

About Writing.

Where do your ideas come from?

Oh, man, you know, they come from everywhere but usually they’re inspired by things I read. For instance, for VAIN I’d just read this amazing book called Kisses from Katie. Its author Katie Davis dropped all her college plans, moved to Uganda at nineteen and decided, “I’m gonna’ stay and adopt a bunch of incredible kids and feed a bunch of incredible people.” It was her fate and I was so in awe of her. Anyway, her story inspired me to dream up VAIN.

How do you plan your books?

I lay out a basic plot line for the novel just to create my skeleton before delving a bit deeper into plotting out the subplots. All my characters get their own page of description where I go so far as to describe where and how they grew up and how that built them into the person they are. I create an entire world before I even write the first word so I cannot be taken by surprise.
Do you plan an entire series, or take it book-by-book?
My series are strange in that they aren’t chronological to one particular set of main characters. I don’t like writing MC’s for more than one book. I’m not sure why but I get tired of them quickly. I like to move on so I build my series as a sequence of stand alones, usually borrowing secondary characters from previous novels and making them my main characters.

How do you pick your covers?

I have the distinct advantage of having a genius marketing executive for a hubs. When I say genius, I mean he’s unfairly gifted with extraordinary creative talent. I tell him what I think I kind of, sort of want. He disregards that usually and gives me what I actually want. Then, voila! I don’t like to brag but my covers really are incredible. :D

What's Next?

What is your next book about? (140 characters or less!)

Spencer Blackwell is his father’s wicked pawn but he feels he doesn’t have a choice because his bank account can't take the hit regardless if his soul is turning as black as the deeds he’s hired to do.

Will this book be part of a series?

GREED is book two of The Seven Deadly Series.

What was your favourite part to write and why?

Funnily enough, my favourite part is a section I’ve yet to write. The ending is going to be DYNAMITE! It’s just so powerful and so emotional.
What else are you working on? At the moment, nothing else. GREED consumes me…the novel, not the sin. Nyuck, nyuck.

Five Random Questions!

Ebook or paper/hardback? Ebook.

Favourite colour? Teal.

Favourite character you’ve created? Ian Aberdeen of VAIN.
Dream holiday destination? Somewhere remote and somewhere tropical. Bring on the sun, baby!

What are you reading at the moment? The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis

 

I have to agree Fisher's covers are absolutely gorgeous!

Stay tuned for a Callum and Harper post and a Greed teaser!

 

Much Love!

Lettie.

Xxx

Nicole Williams on New Adult.

Last but not least Nicole Williams shares her thoughts on New Adult!

 

What does “New Adult” mean to you?

To me, it means a new sub-category that’s been created to bridge the YA and Adult markets. Sweet and simple!

What first drew you to New Adult?

I love reading and writing about college-aged characters and there were so few books actually about that age-range when I was in my late teens/early twenties. I love that the characters are figuring out who they are in life, making a bunch of mistakes, and not afraid to pick up the pieces along the way. I love the drama, angst, and intensity of the category.

Why did you want to write a New Adult book?

My very first books were New Adult, before the term had been coined. They were about college-aged students and even though there wasn’t a lot of sexual content, or heavy language, there were still mature concepts these characters dealt with that separated them from typical YA books. It was less about wanting to write a New Adult book, and just what I wrote at the time and someone put a label on it later. 

What would you love to see next in New Adult?

I’d love to see some paranormal and dystopian New Adult. The trend is contemporary right now, and I love it, but I think it would be great to see this New Adult category branch out some more. 

 

I’m the New York Times and USATODAY bestselling author of the Lost & Found series, the Crash series, and a handful of others. Basically, I get to do what I love. Every single day. I write romance because I’m a sucker for a good love story, and I write happy endings because there are too few of them in real life.





Thank you so much to Nicole for very kindly taking the time to feature on my blog!

I think Nicole put it perfectly, New Adult definitely bridges the gap between Young Adult and Adult!

 

What do you think?

Much Love!

Lettie

Xxx

Jolene Perry on New Adult.

Today Jolene Perry is sharing her opinions on and experience with New Adult! Jolene is another of my favourites and has collaborated with both Nyrae Dawn and Steph Campbell.

 

Jolene's Thoughts. 

What's funny is that my first published book was a New Adult book, even though there wasn't a name for that genre yet. I wrote the story of a girl whose first year of college was delayed because she got cancer. When she's finally able to go, she's forced to live next door to her brother and she maybe...might...end up being close friends with a guy who she may or may not fall for ;-) .....That was The Next Door Boys.

 

Steph Campbell and I did the same thing with My Heart for Yours. We wrote it as an upper YA, but once NA came out, we both knew our book fit into that category better.

When the NA category came out for real, I realized that a LOT of what I'd written fell under the age guidelines, so I cleaned them up and published - Falling, Left to Love, My Forever, 10 Weeks, 3 Sides to a Circle... 

I know that nearly all of the NA titles out right now are romance, and most of my novels focus on that, but I LOVE college stories. I love friendship stories. I love the idea that for the first time in a person's life, they're accountable for their own actions but they maybe haven't had enough experience to choose well ;-) I'm excited to watch NA branch out into all kinds of stories, exploring the time in our lives when we really come into our own and learn who we are.

 

 

Jolene grew up in South-central Alaska. She’s lived in Anchorage, near the Alyeska ski resort, on a cabin on an island on a lake, and then in a boring old house.

Jolene cannot express how many times she wished she could write a whole novel. And now she has. Several times. Life is good.

http://www.jolenesbeenwriting.blogspot.co.uk/

 

 

 

Thank you so much to Jolene for very kindly taking the time to feature on my blog even with her recent release Out of Play!

 

I love that Jolene mentioned that New Adult style books have been around but now it has it's own genre it can branch out and diversify. I also love college/university stories, it's such an unique environment!

 

Do you agree with Jolene?

Can you think of any 'Upper YA' books that would be New Adult now?

Much Love!

Lettie

Xxx

What is New Adult?

 
New Adult's really found it's niche over the past year! But everyone seems to have a slightly different interpretation of what does and doesn't qualify as New Adult so I thought I would post my thoughts!

Why is New Adult necessary?
I love the Young Adult or Teen genre but it definitely focuses on young characters still in school and sometimes I do get tired of the teenage drama or parent filled lives. However I find the fiction section full of stories involving married women with children or at least people high up on the career ladder which I can never relate to!

What is New Adult to Me?
To me the New Adult genre bridges that gap in between being a teenager worried about all the dramatics that brings and being a full fledged adult with adult responsibilities.
It encompasses the 18-25 age range when people are starting to venture out of their parent's homes into the adult world whether they attend University, start full time work, or just decide where their life is heading.
New Adult covers this period of firsts and uncertainties and appeals to people who are themselves in that age range or who just enjoy reading about it!
 
What isn't New Adult?
I don't think any stories in which the main characters are under 18 or still attending Secondary/High School can be considered New Adult as those characters are still just teenagers and not usually part of the adult world.
Obviously there are exceptions but I would automatically put a book with a high school setting in the Young Age genre. However I now think of the book (dependant on subject matter) as New Adult even if the book starts just before or after High School graduation.

Is the New Adult genre just about contemporary books?
No, I think now the genre is established it will begin to branch out into different sub-genres.
I do think it's easier to write contemporary New Adult  purely because contemporary fiction had more of a gap in the market for books based on the 18-24 age range whereas other genres like fantasy are less focussed on the characters and more so on the plot. For example,  I think there are probably a lot of fantasy or sci-fi books, in particular, that would fall into the New Adult genre but are fantasy or sci-fi first so that's what they get labelled as if that makes sense!

I think I confused myself at one point writing this post so let me know what you think New Adult is?
Much Love!
Lettie
Xxx

Steph Campbell on New Adult.

Steph Campbell is the first of my New Adult authors to give their perspective on the genre

What first drew you to New Adult?
The infinite number of amazing stories to read and tell from the NA age range. To me, NA is typically college age (18-24-ish) (even if the characters don’t attend college.)

Those are the years of so many firsts. First time away from home, first real relationships, first time living along, first major responsibilities and first real time to face hurdles on your own—with no parachute. It’s an incredible time to read and write about.

 

Why did you want to write a New Adult book?
Previously, I’d written what I’d call Mature/Older YA. There wasn’t really a whole lot of (what is now referred to as) New Adult out there.

The first NA book I wrote was LENGTHS (with Liz Reinhardt). At that time, Liz and I set out to write a book that we wanted to read, but couldn’t find. A Smart, sexy, college-aged romance with a lot of heart. I hope we accomplished that with the Lengths series! J

 

What does “New Adult” mean to you?

To me, New Adult is less about sexual content (though, the age does allow for more graphic content) and more about finding yourself. I think new adult is essentially coming of age. Books about self-discovery now that you’re on your own, and turning into the person you are going to be.

 

What would you love to see next in New Adult?

More character driven books, and less reliance heavy sexual content and huge plot twists.  

 

 

Stephanie Campbell lives in Southwest Louisiana and is a happily married mother to four evil geniuses, is a nail polish addict and YA Junkie. When she isn't reading, writing or wiping someone's nose, you can usually find her baking something. She blogs at: http://stephcampbell.blogspot.com/

 

Thank you so much to Steph for very kindly taking the time to feature on my blog even as she's moving!

I definitely agree that New Adult encompasses a time of so many firsts and creates a very diverse genre!

 

What do you think?

Much Love!

Lettie.

Xxx

New Adult Week!

After the excitement of the New Adult Read-a-Thon and all the new releases I've decided to dedicated a blog week to New Adult books and authors!

 From tomorrow (Sunday) until next Saturday all posts will be devoted to the New Adult genre!
 
What's coming up!

• Authors on New Adult~ Steph Campbell, Nyrae Dawn, Jolene Perry and Nicole Williams.
• Reviews~ A lot of my Read-a-thon titles!
• Features~ What is New Adult? Favourite Authors.
• Discussions~ on Companion books!

Hope you enjoy it!
Much Love!
Lettie
Xxxx

Lettie Loves Films!

Good Friday! I will be celebrating Good Friday like I always do with fish and chips at my Grandparents!
I mentioned the other week that I had a crazy film week so I thought I'd do a little post on them! 

 Jack the Giant Slayer!

Courtesy of Sky Rewards- 3D!

I really wanted to see this one so I was thrilled when I managed to get Sky Rewards tickets last minute!
I loved the premise, Jack and the Beanstalk is such a well loved tale! This adaptation was so clever. I loved the interpretation, the little aspects that linked back to the original tale as well as adding a new dimension were so well incorporated and the film flowed effortlessly. The ending was such a clever twist!
Jack was the perfect hero, witty and courageous I liked his backstory and how he was such a dreamer. The way he stepped up to plate to rescue Isabelle and do the right thing was portrayed as so natural for him.
Isabelle was one of those characters that grew on me. She initially annoyed me but as her relationship with her father and her reaction to her future were explored I really warmed to her. She was brave if s little naïve and I loved her feminist attitude to ruling.
Lord Roderick, typical villain. I liked the character and his little assistant who at times seemed harsh than Roderick! I do feel he did not think his plan through!
Actors who stood out- Nicholas Hoult as Jack- brilliantly acted and portrayed character. Ewan McGregor as Elmont- Such a comic hero!
Confusion- The monks- they seemed so important but once the beanstalk appeared they disappeared?
 

 Oz, The Great and Powerful!

I knew I wanted to see this the second I heard of it! I loved the Wizard of Oz so I was thrilled to see more of that world!
I've already mentioned my love of Wizard of Oz so I loved all the little links back to the original film especially the foreshadowing and how every major point of the original film was absorbed into this film. I loved the whole set up of the plot and the build up, the film managed to retain an element of surprise and suspense despite the fact most people have seen the final outcome.
The characters were fabulously created out of Frank Baum's imagination and small details added or enhanced to add originality.
I found Oz to be hilariously arrogant- I kind of loved what a con artist he was in the 'real' world. I enjoyed watching him grow as a character and use his former ways to really help the people of Oz.
Theodora was my initially favourite character, I loved her image and outlook. She did seem overly naïve for a witch but she was so nice it balance out.
I think Eva was the most evil character, her deception and lack of familial compassion was unnerving.
I loved Oz's two 'sidekicks'. Finlay was such a loyal character, I loved that he was a talking flying monkey. The relationship between Finlay and Oz was so entertaining because once Finlay pledges his irrevocable life debt to Oz he has to keep all his secrets which he finds so hard! I just loved his character.
China Doll was such a sweet character. I loved how gentle Oz was with her and how carefully he put her back together. She was at times much braver than Oz and Finlay and much more tough. I loved how she switched on tears to get Oz to let her stay. I felt for her as her whole village was destroyed but she remained strong and determined.
I loved the conclusion of the film it really set the scene for The original story and film.
Actors who stood out- Mila Kunis as Theodora- brilliantly acted, she brought so many different emotions to a complex character. Joey King as China Girl- Such good vocal acting for a young girl!
Confusion- Glinda- why didn't she use her powers more effectively.
 

Wreck-it-Ralph!

I love Disney so naturally I had to see their latest film!
Such a great premise! Arcade games were such a big part of childhood for so many people so it provided a link to that. I loved that it was from the point of view of the 'villain'. The community they built 'behind' the games was so well planned and it was so entertaining to see all the different character interacting. I loved the support group they ran for them so they could talk about how being bad made them feel so witty and funny. The actual plot was so cleverly layered that even if you figure out one part of it you still ended up surprised. The inclusion of modern space/violent games was very tongue-in-cheek, the way Ralph was so traumatised by the violence was a clever message as well as comical.
Ralph was a great character. I really felt for the way he was left out in his game, forced to sleep outside and rarely invited in. Ralph has a point because he was obviously very good at wrecking things which was his job so why wasn't he rewarded? I loved how he accidently went rouge and tried to become a hero. His relationship with Vanellope was so cute, I loved how it made both of them better people.
Vanellope was definitely my favourite character! She was tough  and confident in herself despite being picked on by everyone in her game and unable to leave. The other racers were absolutely awful to her! The way she teased Ralph was so funny to watch and her determination was really touching. I loved the twist!
The side cast was great as it always in Disney films. Fix-it-Felix was such a stereotypical nice guy who was genuinely confused as to Ralph's unhappiness. The Nicelanders were really quite mean but I could kind of understand them- loved how they eventually welcomed Ralph. Sergeant Tamora Jean Calhoun was so stern and militant she made me giggle. King Candy was slightly creepy and reminded me of an Alice in Wonderland character. Sour Bill really suited his name, his voice was so dour!
Actors who stood out- Sarah Silverman as Vanellope- brilliantly portrayed such a range of emotions. Jane Lynch as Sergeant Tamora Jean Calhoun- I loved how you could heard such a range of tones in her voice.
Cameo- Skylar Astin as a Nicelander- I loved him in Pitch Perfect.

What have you seen recently?
Let me know if you like this kind of post!
Much Love!
Lettie
Xxx

Friday Fab Five: Older Contemps

 

 

Fab Five Friday!

Topic- Older Contemporaries!

This idea came to after my Top Ten 2012 Contemporaries post. I wanted a way to post my favourite older contemporary reads!
These five books would all get five star ratings in my opinion.

Two Way Street by Lauren Barnholdt

This was my first every random Amazon contemporary buy and I love it! It launched my love of road trip books and Lauren Barnholdt. I love the characters, the plot and it still feels unique to me despite all the newer road trip books. I have reread this one countless times and I still find myself picking it up every now and then.

One Night That Changed Everything by Lauren Barnholdt

My second favourite Lauren Barnholdt book! It's full of funny side characters, unique plot points and complex relations! It is a quick fun read!

Amy and Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson

I think I've mentioned how much I love this book countless times! I even reviewed it despite the fact I read it pre blog. It was so good Morgan Matson is now on my auto buy list! :)

The Boyfriend List by E. Lockhart

I love how quirky and unique this one is. Ruby is such a realistic character, a typical teenage girl who is unaware of her own appeal and has beenostracised by her former best friends and boyfriend. It is a great quick series!

Effortless by S.C.Stephens.

I first read this online years ago and had to buy it when I saw it on Amazon! It is quite a hot read but it deals with realistic issues and has such a enticing male lead that I cannot wait for the next book to be released!

What older Contemporary books do you still love?
Much Love!
Lettie
Xxxx

Top Ten Tuesday: Contemporary Reads of 2012

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by: The Broke and the Bookish.

This week's topic is: I'm choosing Contemporary 2012 reads!

 

This freebie week fits in really well with my feature! I decided to do my top ten contemporary books I've read in 2012! YA and NA!
 

 

Easy by Tammara Webber

I have been re-reading this one like crazy! I love the side cast of characters, the theme, the romance, Jackie, Lucas... Everything really! Reviewed in October.

 

 

If I Stay and Where She Went by Gayle Forman 

 

No surprises here! I loved these two books- brilliantly unique contemporaries with a fantastic cast of characters and a brilliant use of flashbacks! I loved how the two books are from two different point of views and both felt very emotionally deep and real. Reviewd in July!

 

Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson

 

Morgan Matson has been one of my go to summer contemporary authors since Amy and Roger! I loved concept and plot line of Second Chance Summer and the complex characters. Reviewed in July.

 

Dash and Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan

 

A fun festive witty contemporary read which incorporates so much of New York City and it's diversity! Reviewed in October.

 

 

Because of Low and While It Lasts by Abbi Glines

 

I have gushed over Abbi Glines Sea Breeze series it's no surprise these two made it on this list! Because of Low was much more sweet and based around family drama whereas While It Lasts was hotter and involved more emotional drama. I love the contrast between the two and the continuation of the cast while keeping the two stories separate. Because of Low reviewed in September and While It Lasts reviewed as part of  Young Adult and New Adult Month.

 

  Pushing The Limits by Katie McGarry

 

This book has everything you could ask for in a YA contemporary novel, a heroine you can connect to, a hot boy with depth, a unique yet familiar plot and utterly addictive! Reviewed in July

Lengths by Steph Campbell and Liz Reinhardt





 I loved how hot and sweet this was! I liked how Whit seemed to be the more troubled on as usually in YA/NA the guy is the most 'broken'. Such an unexpected great read. Reviewed as part of Young Adult and New Adult Month!
 

What has been your favourite contemporary read of 2012?

Much Love!

Lettie

Xxxx