Review | Unraveling Isobel by Eileen Cook (ARC)

Title: Unraveling Isobel
Author: Eileen Cook
Series: N/A
Pages: 320
Date Released: October 30, 2012

Summary: Isobel’s life is falling apart. Her mom just married some guy she met on the Internet only three months before, and is moving them to his sprawling, Gothic mansion off the coast of nowhere. Goodbye, best friend. Goodbye, social life. Hello, icky new stepfather, crunchy granola town, and unbelievably good-looking, officially off-limits stepbrother. But on her first night in her new home, Isobel starts to fear that it isn't only her life that’s unraveling—her sanity might be giving way too. Because either Isobel is losing her mind, just like her artist father did before her, or she’s seeing ghosts. Either way, Isobel’s fast on her way to being the talk of the town for all the wrong reasons.

    Unraveling Isobel was so exciting that I read it in 3 hours and it was 3 in the morning when I started it!! I saw the sun come up. Isobel was a wonderful female lead character and I loved her from the start. I felt sorry for her for having such a flighty, easily influenced mother. I could also connect with her for being scared that she is doomed to repeat her father's past and become crazy. Even though she is one of the most sane in the book. I think I would have liked to hear more about her gift because the descriptions of it were a bit lacking. I like the way the plot unfolded and the things that were not apparent until the very end. I loved how much detective work was involved too since I love me some Nancy Drew! Her relationship with Nathaniel was very well paced. He was hurting in his own right and I loved how he stood by her and believed in her. Unraveling Isobel was a wonderful stand-alone novel with wonderful characters that I would love to converse with more.    

Author Website

Goodreads

1st Chapter of Unraveling Isobel

ARC Review: Melody Burning by Whitley Strieber

Beresford doesn’t remember much about his past or how he came to live in the chutes and crawl spaces of the posh high-rise that shares his name. But when rock star and teen sensation Melody McGrath moves to an apartment on the fiftieth floor, he knows he has to be near her. Although she doesn’t realize it, Melody is threatened by more dangerous forces than her manipulative stage mom and the pressures of life in the spotlight. The owner of the glamorous building has been hiding a fatal secret within its walls, and Beresford puts all his plans at risk. Will Beresford and Melody be able to escape with their lives (and love) intact?

I honestly don't know what I take from Melody Burning. It was crazy! The story, the plot, the characters, they were all over the place! Somehow though it all tied together nicely. It was just something about it that made me at least think of it for a while and good books make you think. Melody is a nice girl under too much pressure from people, mostly and especially her mother, I felt sorry for her. Beresford's story was sad also and his voice was adorably innocent. The building is all he knows, making him have hardly no tactic about things. Strieber did an excellent job of developing his character. Together, he and Melody are a whirlwind of love and preciousness. Making the ending satisfying and cute!

ARC Review: Paradise by Jill S. Alexander

      Paisley Tillery is the drummer for a country rock band. If they can make it to the stage at the Texapalooza music fest, then Paisley will be closer to her dream of a career in music and a ticket out of her small Texas town. Drumming and music are what Paisley has always wanted. Until the band gets a new lead singer, the boy from Paradise, Texas. With Paradise in her life, what Paisley wants, and what she needs, complicate her dreams coming true.



           Paradise was not what I expected and that was definitely not a bad thing. Paisley is spunky and brave. She's funny and has a mixed personality: shy at times, but isn't afraid to speak her mind. Gabe is a Colombian, can't even describe how hot I think that is. He sweetly confident and forward with Paisley, which is exactly what she needs. However there is deeper message than the romance in Paradise. I think the message is to follow your dreams and as Paradise says, "Live wide open." Paisley and her sister, Lacey are intensely pressured by their mother. In their mother's eyes, she does what she does because she loves them, but at their second gig, surrounded by everyone else's family, Paisley never feels more alone.
      The ending of Paradise is so wonderful and fast. The sisters tell their mother everything and get to live their dreams. Paradise was such and inspiring story with wonderful supporting characters and love all around. I do admit that I don't listen to much country music, but with an accordion player like Paradise and friendships like Paisley's with Waylon and Levi, it could quickly become my favorite genre of music.

ARC Review: My Life Undecided by Jessica Brody

PLEASE READ THIS! MY LIFE DEPENDS ON IT!

Okay, maybe that was a bit melodramatic, but I’m sorry, I’m feeling a bit melodramatic at the moment.

Here’s the deal. My name is Brooklyn Pierce, I’m fifteen years old, and I am decisionally challenged. Seriously, I can’t remember the last good decision I made. I can remember plenty of crappy ones though. Including that party I threw when my parents were out of town that accidentally burned down a model home. Yeah, not my finest moment, for sure.

But see, that’s why I started a blog. To enlist readers to make my decisions for me. That’s right. I gave up. Threw in the towel. I let someone else be the one to decide which book I read for English. Or whether or not I accepted an invitation to join the debate team from that cute-in-a-dorky-sort-of-way guy who gave me the Heimlich Maneuver in the cafeteria. (Note to self: Chew the melon before swallowing it.) I even let them decide who I dated!

Well, it turns out there are some things in life you simply can’t choose or have chosen for you—like who you fall in love with. And now everything’s more screwed up than ever.

But don’t take my word for it, read the book and decide for yourself. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll scream in frustration. Or maybe that’s just me. After all, it’s my life.

 
     If there ever was a unique concept, this would be it. I was instantly surprised at it and also quickly entranced. Brooklyn's voice was slow to start off, but then she got on a roll and I enjoyed her fascinating dialogue. Brooklyn was really prone to making bad and turned to blogging and her readers to make decisions for her. When I realized what she was going to do, I instantly thought it was the stupidest choice anyone could ever make. I also really wanted to find out what would happen. As I continue reading, I see that the blog is a good thing for her mostly and leads to a lot of good outcomes. Her hardest choice ended up being who to love. At that point, I realize that the blog wasn't the point at all. The point was that to make good decisions, you have to first make bad ones.
     I really enjoyed this book. Brooklyn was awesome and Hunter and Brian were wonderful. It was funny and extremely open to a 15-year-old's life. It shows how much society can influence a person's life and shows how sometimes, if you want to be happy, you have to ignore them.

Wondrous Words Wednesday (3)

Wondrous Words Wednesday is hosted by Bermudaonion’s Weblog.

Wondrous Words Wednesday is a weekly meme where we share new (to us) words that we’ve encountered in our reading.”

My word this week is from My Life Undecided by Jessica Brody.

Golden Doodle

Noun: A Goldendoodle is a mixed breed dog, a hybrid cross between a Golden Retriever and a Poodle.

Example of Use: "Golden retriever and poodle." The crinkles around her mouth soften just a fraction as she stares at her former companion.

"Oh, a golden doodle!" I say excited that I actually know the name of the breed thanks to Brian and his little Heimlich maneuver pinecone story."*

*This quote is from an ARC and subject to change.

Happy Wednesday!

Teaser Tuesday: My Life Undecided by Jessica Brody

 

TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to:

Grab your current read.

Let the book fall open to a random page.

Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.

You

also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your

“teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations

if they like the teaser you’ve given!

Please avoid spoilers!

"I'm Brian Harris. I sit behind you in English class." My head whips back to center. "You do?" I immediately regret saying this because he looks a little hurt by it. So I try to cover and say, "I mean, you do. That's right." 

~Page 82, My Life Undecided by Jessica Brody

*This teaser is from an ARC and is subject to change.

LEAVE A COMMENT with either the link to your own “Teaser Tuesdays” post,

or share your “teaser” in a comment here (if you don’t have a blog).

Thanks!

 

 

Teaser Tuesday: Kat, Incorrigible

TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to:

Grab your current read.

Let the book fall open to a random page.

Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.

You

also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your

“teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations

if they like the teaser you’ve given!

Please avoid spoilers!

"I'd never drunk unwatered wine before, and it made me a little nervous. I decided not to try flinging it down my throat yet, the way Mrs. Banfield had done even though I was sorely tempted."*

~Page 118, Kat, Incorrigible by Stephanie Burgis

*This teaser is from an ARC and is subject to change.

LEAVE A COMMENT with either the link to your own “Teaser Tuesdays” post,

or share your “teaser” in a comment here (if you don’t have a blog).

Thanks!