Mini Reviews: Pine River (Tijan), The Love Plot (Young), The Unmaking of June Farrow (Young)

Pine River
Author: Tijan
Publication Date: October 24, 2023
Publisher: Tijan
Genre: Contemporary Romance, New Adult, Sports Romance

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★

My thoughts:

If you enjoy Tijan’s new adult books, this book is for you. It’s classic Tijan with a girl who doesn’t realize how cool and bad@$$ she is. She attracts the guy no one can touch. They hook up and become a couple without ever planning on it. There’s lots of drama along the way. It was fun. I enjoyed Ramsay and Scout’s romance. I loved the side characters and wouldn’t mind getting books for Ramsay’s triplet cousins. Was it my favorite book of Tijan’s? No, but it was everything I’ve come to expect from her.

The Love Plot
Author: Samantha Young
Narrator: Savannah Peachwood
Publication Date:
August 29, 2023
Publisher: Penguin Audio
Genre: Contemporary Romance, New Adult, Sports Romance

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★

My thoughts:

The Love Plot was a fun book to listen to. Star was complex character who had her boundaries pushed in several different directions after she started fake dating grumpy Rafe.  I adored how they fell for each other, and how Rafe loved carefree Star the way she was. The way Star grew and came to certain understandings was well written. Rafe’s family was frustrating, and I wish he would have spoken his mind earlier at times, but everything that happened made for an interesting story. In the end, I was happy with the outcome. 

The Unmaking of June Farrow
Author: Adrienne Young

Narrator: Brittany Pressley
Publication Date: October 17, 2023
Publisher: Random House Audio
Genre: Mystery, Magical Realism, Fantasy, Fiction

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

My thoughts:

What drew me to read The Unmaking of June Farrow was the eye-catching cover and title, and all of the rave reviews this book has been getting. It’s probably one I would have passed over because of the fantasy aspect of it had I not read all those reviews. I’m happy I didn’t. I loved listening to this book. The mystery of the timelines and why June made the decisions she did had me enthralled. I liked how memories came back to her piece by piece and what each revealed. I stressed over some choices June had to make. I loved all of the side characters and what they added to the story. It was an easy book to get wrapped up in. It was so well written. This was my first read by Young, but it won’t be my last. I can’t wait to read her other books now. 

Review: Rebel (Ginger Scott)

Rebel
Series: The Boys of Welles, #2
Author: Ginger Scott

Publication Date: September 8, 2022
Genre: Mature Young Adult / New Adult, Contemporary Romance
Note: This review is for an ARC provided by WordSmith Publicity and is my unbiased opinion.

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Synopsis: 

On the surface, Cameron Hass always seems a bit risky. First to take the dare, last to leave the tracks in the face of an oncoming train, the Boston rebel has always liked to flirt with danger. But underneath, he’s terrified. Not about breaking an arm or getting pulled over for driving twice the speed limit, but about the man he’s going to become when he graduates from Welles Academy. His role models have never really been much to look up to.

Brooklyn Bennett, on the other hand, always appears to have it together. Every button is done, every hair in the perfect place, every grade not just an A, but an A+. Beautiful, smart, and from political royalty, Brooklyn set her future goals at the age of five, and she’s never strayed from the path of following in her parents’ diplomatic footsteps.

Until now.

Surviving a terrifying car crash her junior year left Brooklyn questioning a lot of things. Losing her best friend left her feeling alone. But Cameron’s always been a good listener. And messy or not, his heart has always been in the right place. And when Brooklyn needed someone, he was right there. Maybe . . . he’s been there all along.

But how do chaos and rules go together? And what happens if the rest of the world wants to keep them apart?


The Boys of Welles series started off strong with Loner, but it got even better with Rebel. I loved this book. The Cameron-Brooklyn match up was perfection. I loved the mix of drama and emotions their story held. I was surprised at how many times I laughed. This was one of those reads that had me wanting to pick it up and read any spare minute I had.

Cameron was the wild child class clown type that everyone but authority figures adored. Brooklyn was the good girl who always followed her parents’ rules. Cameron has crushed on her for years, and Brooklyn has just realized she maybe likes him as more than a friend. They were so sweet together. I loved the moments he was cheering her on in her physical recovery. Those were balanced out by the times she stood up for him. Their relationship was a good give and take and proved what a great couple they were despite their differences.

Rebel shows once again why Ginger Scott is a master of mature YA romances. Cameron and Brooklyn were exactly what I want all of opposites attract romance couples to be like. I cannot wait for the next book in the series to find out what’s up with their friends Morgan and James.

Review: Pieces of You (Jay McLean)

Pieces of You
Series: Pieces Duet, #1
Author: Jay McLean

Publication Date: July 1, 2021
Genre: Contemporary Romance, New Adult, Sports Romance 

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Synopsis:

They could’ve been perfect.
In another time. Another world.
Where his wasn’t falling apart.

And hers wasn’t already in pieces.

High school senior Holden Eastwood only has one fear in life: growing up.
He spends his days unmotivated, moving from one game to the next, searching for his next challenge.
He never expected that challenge to come in the form of a girl…
A girl with zero fashion sense, a filthy mouth, and a bullsh*t attitude.

Unlike Holden, Jameson Taylor had no choice but to grow up.
Neglected, isolated, and forced to raise herself, Jameson only has one goal in life: graduate and move on.
The last thing she needs is some guy she can’t stand suddenly declaring her as his new hobby.


Their lives couldn’t be more opposite.
Their pasts a complete paradox.
But in each other, they find the unexpected…
They find solace.
Fragments of forever…
A forever that might tear them to pieces. 


Pieces of You took me on an emotional ride. I already knew I liked Holden from Leo (Preston Brothers, #3) and Jamie won my heart immediately. I couldn’t wait to for their relationship to blossom. It did that in a sweet way. There were a lot of bombshells dropped throughout this book, so it’s hard to navigate what to mention in this review. I guess I’ll just finish up quickly by saying I loved Holden, his relationship with his mom, and how he tried to keep peace and keep everyone happy. I felt for Jamie, and I wanted happiness and everything for her. I hated Holden’s friend Dean, which surprised me because I expected to love him. I buddy read this book with Ari. We waited until we heard McLean was going to release the second book in the duet soon because angsty and emotion. If you’ve read McLean’s books, you know what I’m talking about. I hate to say it, but we probably should have waited until the second book was released because WHAT IN THE HECK WAS THAT ENDING!?!? We both need some answers and we need them NOW.

CW: alcoholism, domestic violence, child neglect, death of a parent, mentions of the following for a side character: suicide, eating disorder, teen pregnancy

Review: Five Ways to Fall Out of Love (Emily Martin)

Five Ways to Fall Out of Love
Author: Emily Martin
Publication Date: March 16, 2021
Publisher: Inkyard Press
Genre: Young Adult, Fiction, Contemporary Romance
Note: This review is for an ARC and is my unbiased opinion.

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ 

Synopsis:

This whip-smart rom-com explores the risks and rewards of letting love in, for fans of Jennifer E. Smith, Julie Buxbaum, and Sandhya Menon.

How do I hate thee? Let me count the ways…

Aubrey Cash learned the hard way not to rely on love. After all, Webster Casey, the new boy next door she’d been falling for all summer, stood her up at homecoming in front of everyone with no explanation. Proving her theory that love never lasts seems easy when she’s faced with parents whose marriage is falling apart and a best friend who thinks every boy she dates is “the one.” But when sparks fly with a boy who turns out to be Webster’s cousin, and then Webster himself becomes her lab partner for the rest of senior year, Aubrey finds her theory—and her commitment to stay single—put to the test.

As she navigates the breakdown of her family, the consequences her cynicism has on her relationship with her best friend, and her own confusing but undeniable feelings for Webster, Aubrey has to ask herself: What really happened the night Webster stood her up? And if there are five ways to fall out of love…could there perhaps be even more ways to fall back in?


I have been waiting for another book from Emily Martin since I fell in love with The Year We Fell Apart. I was so excited to read Five Ways to Fall Out of Love when I downloaded it. I put off reading it for a bit because YA contemporaries just hadn’t been hitting the right note with me. I’m happy to report that Five Ways to Fall Out of Love got me back into the swing of reading them.

Emily Martin’s writing was as engaging as I remember it being. I was immediately pulled into Aubrey’s life. She seemed like a normal teenage girl. She wasn’t the “special snowflake” we see sometimes in YA fiction.  Aubrey had real life insecurities navigating high school friends, cliques, and boys. She also had family problems that I believe many teenagers will be able to relate to. There was a lot of hurt she had to deal with in all of that. I liked how Martin portrayed it all.

As for the romance… Well, it had its love triangle moments. You might have guessed that from the blurb. Aubrey used to like Webster, now she likes his cousin Holland. Being with Holland led to being around Webster more than normal and drug up old feelings. Normally, I’m not a fan of love triangles. I didn’t mind this one because it didn’t always feel like one, and there wasn’t any overlap between Aubrey being with either of the guys (no cheating). What I didn’t like was that Webster and Holland were cousins. That did bug me. At least they weren’t brothers, I guess.

A little more about the guys since I won’t be giving away how things go down or end up. Webster was not my favorite guy. I knew, from reading countless romances, that his rudeness had to be related to something Aubrey was unaware of. I could tell her cared for her and liked her despite his actions. That being said, he made some poor decisions that drove me nuts. Holland was a great guy from the start. He’s a character you can’t help but like because he’s just so dang decent. He treated Aubrey well, better than Webster. Holland had some flaws of his own in relation to Aubrey.

Oh! One of my favorite things was the friendship aspect of the book. Aubrey had to navigate both a long-term and a new-found friendship. I really loved how everything went down in terms of both and what Aubrey learned from them.

Another thing I should mention is that this book is about seniors in high school. It is on the mature side of things when it comes to the YA genre. There is some sexual content, alcohol, and partying.

It’s hard to talk about some of my feelings about this book without giving things away. It was well written, but I think some readers are going to have a problem with Aubrey’s decisions and maybe even the ending. I kind of wanted it to either go a different direction than it did or for an epilogue. I vacillated between 3.5 and 4 stars as a rating and ended up going with 4 because it was so well written, held my attention, and had me genuinely rooting for Aubrey to find her way through her senior year of high school.

Review: See Me After Class (Meghan Quinn)

See Me After Class
Author: Meghan Quinn
Publication Date: November 12, 2020
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Note: This review is for an ARC and is my unbiased opinion.

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ½

Synopsis:

“Did you have relations with my brother . . .”

Good question.

I’d like to preface this by saying it was never my intention to ever get involved in a workplace romance, let alone get involved with the most surly, agitating, and pompous man I’ve ever met who just so happens to be my new friend’s brother.

My intentions were to show students how English and reading books could actually be fun and make a new life for myself in the suburbs of Chicago.

But so far, I’ve managed to be called into the principal’s office.

Coerced into participating in the teacher’s badminton league.

And instigated into passionate fights with Arlo Turner over education and decorum while losing my underwear at the same time.

Known as Mr. Turns Me On, he’s the reason I might get fired from my first ever teaching job.


Thank you to Meghan Quinn for releasing another book during the pandemic. I can’t thank her enough for giving me a fun, flirty romance to take my mind off of the state of the world. I adored every minute of See Me After Class. This book had so much to love:

  • It was a teacher-teacher romance. No student-teacher thing going on here to make things uncomfortable.
  • Greer and Arlo had an incredibly fun enemies to lovers romance.
  • There were tons of hilarious moments! I laughed so hard at the prank war and many other scenes.
  • It was on the sexier side of Meghan Quinn’s romantic comedies.
  • The characters were lovable. Arlo’s straight lace attitude and cardigans were perfection. Greer’s out of the box teaching style and sense of humor contrasted well with Arlo’s personality.
  • Character growth for those two only added to the story and made me love them and their relationship more.
  • I was actually surprised by the climax. I was expecting it to be something else.
  • There were hilarious side characters whose stories I can’t wait for.

See Me After Class was such an entertaining read. It managed to keep my attention at a time that not many books could. I loved it and can’t wait to read more in the series.

Review: Super Fake Love Song (David Yoon)

Super Fake Love Song
Author: David Yoon
Publication Date: November 17, 2020
Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary Romance
Note: This review is for an ARC and is my unbiased opinion.

Rating: ★ ★ ★

Synopsis:

From the bestselling author of Frankly in Love comes a contemporary YA rom-com where a case of mistaken identity kicks off a string of (fake) events that just may lead to (real) love.

When Sunny Dae—self-proclaimed total nerd—meets Cirrus Soh, he can’t believe how cool and confident she is. So when Cirrus mistakes Sunny’s older brother Gray’s bedroom—with its electric guitars and rock posters—for Sunny’s own, he sort of, kind of, accidentally winds up telling her he’s the front man of a rock band.

Before he knows it, Sunny is knee-deep in the lie: He ropes his best friends into his scheme, begging them to form a fake band with him, and starts wearing Gray’s rock-and-roll castoffs. But no way can he trick this amazing girl into thinking he’s cool, right? Just when Sunny is about to come clean, Cirrus asks to see them play sometime. Gulp.

Now there’s only one thing to do: Fake it till you make it.

Sunny goes all in on the lie, and pretty soon, the strangest things start happening. People are noticing him in the hallways, and he’s going to football games and parties for the first time. He’s feeling more confident in every aspect of his life, and especially with Cirrus, who’s started to become not just his dream girl but also the real deal. Sunny is falling in love. He’s having fun. He’s even becoming a rocker, for real.

But it’s only a matter of time before Sunny’s house of cards starts tumbling down. As his lies begin to catch up with him, Sunny Dae is forced to wonder whether it was all worth it—and if it’s possible to ever truly change.


Super Fake Love Story is a book I was excited to read. I loved Yoon’s Frankly in Love, and I had high expectations for this new book. I hate to say it, but it didn’t quite live up to my expectations.

I had a love-hate relationship with Sunny Dae. He was this big nerd who sometimes came off in an endearing way and other times came off as annoying. I respected that he let his nerd flag fly, but hated when he got caught up in being what he thought Cirrus wanted. His character did have a lot of growth throughout the story, so that was a good thing.

I loved Sunny’s friends. Milo and Jamal helped make this book more enjoyable. I loved their support of Sunny. I liked how Sunny and Cirrus’ relationship developed – despite the whole lying thing. I do wish their issues hadn’t been so quickly wrapped up in the end, but it was cute. I think my favorite relationship was between Sunny and his brother Grey, though. I liked learning about it.

I think my biggest problem with this book was that it found it kind of boring. I had a hard time getting into it at first, and I thought it might have been a formatting issue with the ARC. It could have been that, or maybe I just wasn’t as interested in the story as I hoped to be. I didn’t find it all that entertaining unless it was when Sunny, Milo, and Jamal were doing music or when I was learning about Grey. I don’t think I was truly sold until all the drama really started happening. Overall, it was just a good read compared to a great read (like Frankly in Love was).

Mini Reviews: The Girl in the Love Song (Scott) & 40-Love (Dade)

The Girl in the Love Song
Series: Lost Boys, #1
Author: Emma Scott
Publication Date: June 7, 2020
Genre: New Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Rating: ★ ★ ★ 

My thoughts:

This book was VERY angst filled. More so than any other book I’ve read by this author. The level of angst was too much for me, honestly. Even though I loved the characters and the story, I had a hard time bringing myself to read it. After about 20% I ended up skimming through until Part 4 where I started reading again. I hate that I did that, but I didn’t want to not finish it. It really was a beautiful story with a fantastic ending.

40-Love
Series: There’s Something About Marysburg, #2
Author: Olivia Dade
Publication Date: May 16, 2020
Publisher: Hussies & Harpies Press
Genre: Contemporary Romance, Sports

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ 

My thoughts:

I’m pretty new to Olivia Dade’s writing. This only my second book by her. I really like how she combines strong, relatable women with hot guys. It’s a nice change from perfect bodies all the time. I enjoyed this book a lot, but there were times where the MC’s hangups about her body and perceived self bugged me. I got over it, though, because I loved the guy who won her heart. It was a fun vacation read.

Review: Varsity Tiebreaker (Ginger Scott)

Varsity Tiebreaker
Series: Varsity, #2
Author: Ginger Scott
Publication Date: July 23, 2020
Publisher: Little Miss Write, LLC
Genre: Mature Young Adult, Contemporary Romance, Sports
Note: This review is for an ARC provided by WordSmith Publicity and is my unbiased opinion.

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Synopsis:

Abby Cortez is a girl with goals, on the verge of turning eighteen and on the brink of stardom. Falling in love isn’t just something she doesn’t have time for, it’s something she doesn’t really believe in. Her rule? Date but never, ever fall.

Tory “Salvatore” D’Angelo loves falling in love…just not for real. The star basketball player at Allensville Public High gives his heart away one girl at a time then takes it back when he’s ready to move on. No serious feelings, no serious pain.

They’re both good plans until Abby’s jaded heart gets all tangled up with Tory’s hopeless one. A friendly rivalry grows into friendship, and long talks start to blur the lines.
Just one problem—Abby’s current boyfriend is Tory’s twin brother, Hayden.


Not going to lie… I was both excited and scared going into this one. I am not a fan of love triangles, and one involving twin brothers made me nervous. The only reasons I read it were I loved Tory in Varsity Heartbreaker and it was Ginger Scott’s book. Ginger Scott never does me wrong.

Varsity Tiebreaker was exactly what I needed it to be. Yes, there’s the whole Hayden – Abby – Tory thing, but it was done well. I never felt like I wasn’t sure who Abby was going to end up with. It was an emotional roller coaster for sure, but not in a bad way. It was a very good way.

I, of course, adored Tory. That kid was a good kid. He might have been a little bit of a player in the past, but he had good intentions and morals. Tory tried to do right by his brother, Abby, and his family. His character is one I would be okay with my daughter dating when she gets older, and that’s saying a lot because the kid isn’t allowed to date until she’s thirty. 😉

Abby was a little more surprise to me than Tory. I liked her as June’s sidekick, but I loved her even more on her own. Her struggles were all over the place, and it was fun to experience her working everything out in her head. I liked the choices she made. I also loved her relationship with her mom.

Abby and Tory worked well together, and I loved the connection they had. Even if it took them a while to get everything figured out. That time gave me just the right amount of angst for this mature YA romance.

As for Hayden… I feel like I got enough of his story here to not necessarily need a book dedicated book for him. That doesn’t mean I don’t want one! I would really love for him to get his own happy ending. He and Tory went through so much, that it would be nice to see how thing really worked out for him. So, maybe a book 4? Please?

Overall, I adored Varsity Tiebreaker. It was a fun, slightly angsty YA sports romance that made me swoon. I enjoyed every minute of it. I also loved the preview for Varsity Rulebreaker. I am dying having to wait for October for that book!

Review: Rich Prick (Tijan)

Rich Prick
Author: Tijan
Publication Date: June 15, 2020
Genre: New Adult, Romance, Contemporary
Note: This review is for an ARC and is my unbiased opinion.

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★

Synopsis:

He walked into school on his first day and owned it.
I guess that’s what happens when you’re a prick, rich, and you’re best friends with the ruling school’s king.
Also didn’t hurt he’s drop dead gorgeous.
That’s all fine.
I mean, I have nothing to do with them.
I’m a loner, invisible, and that’s how I wanted it to be.
I was even proud of it, until I wasn’t.
Until I saw a girl kneel before him.
Until I couldn’t look away.
Until he caught me watching.
His name is Blaise Devroe. My name is Aspen Monson.
He only knew how to get, command, and demand attention.
I knew how to do everything but that.
And this is our story.


Rich Prick is a book that’s harder for me to describe. I’m not sure why. It’s a standalone novel, but it has ties to the Crew and Fallen Crest High worlds. You don’t have to read either of those series to read Rich Prick, but it wouldn’t hurt. For me, it was a book that drew these worlds closer together and tied of a TON of questions I’ve had for a long time.

Blaise is a Mason-esque character. He’s one of those super popular guys who runs Fallen Crest Academy, and yet he isn’t one to bow to peer pressure. He has some deeper issues than Mason did, but his character provides the same level of comfort. I liked his character a lot, and loved how he worked on himself throughout this book. I also enjoyed seeing Blaise’s family situation from his perspective that I saw a different way in Crew. That involved new experiences and changes in his relationship with his half-siblings and father.

I knew from her last name that Ashton was going to be Nate’s younger sister. I didn’t pick up her connections to Crew right away, but once I did, I became even more curious about her. She was a weird chick. Or at least she seemed weird until I got into what shaped her. She didn’t have an innate toughness that other Tijan girls do. She was more emotionally delicate. I liked how different that made her.

I really loved Ashton and Blaise together. Tijan excels in creating couples who build each other up. I always want to root for them and see them come out on top of all the drama. Yes, Rich Prick has that drama and angst one expects from Tijan. I liked how that tension was woven throughout the story. Not one moment felt too heavy.

Rich Prick is going to give Tijan fans something they didn’t know they needed. I didn’t know I needed Ashton and Blaise’s stories until I read this book. Now, I’m even more excited for Nate’s book and Always Crew. I love how these worlds keep growing and intertwining.

Review: Again Again (E. Lockhart)

Again Again
Author: E. Lockhart
Publication Date: June 2, 2020
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Fiction, Romance
Note: This review is for an ARC and is my unbiased opinion.

Rating: ★ ★

Synopsis:

In this novel full of surprises from the New York Times bestselling author of We Were Liars and Genuine Fraud, E. Lockhart ups the ante with an inventive and romantic story about human connection, forgiveness, self-discovery, and possibility.

If you could live your life again, what would you do differently?

After a near-fatal family catastrophe and an unexpected romantic upheaval, Adelaide Buchwald finds herself catapulted into a summer of wild possibility, during which she will fall in and out of love a thousand times—while finally confronting the secrets she keeps, her ideas about love, and the weird grandiosity of the human mind.

A raw, funny story that will surprise you over and over, Again Again gives us an indelible heroine grappling with the terrible and wonderful problem of loving other people.


I’m a fan of E. Lockhart’s earlier releases and have been eagerly awaiting the chance to read Again Again. It was one of my most anticipated YA books of this spring, and I had high hopes for it. Usually, I love the way Lockhart switches up her writing style with every book, but it didn’t work for me here.

I’m sad to say hated the structure of this book. Again Again was trying to do too much. It was this odd blend of a “normal” writing style, prose, texts, and another dimension in bold letters. The prose felt out of place, even though Adelaide is into poetry. I found myself wanting to skip over the broken sentences. The bold dimensional stuff felt redundant, even though I knew what it was trying to accomplish after a bit. I liked the texts but added in with everything else it just felt like just another thing added to make the story different. All of that made it hard to focus on what was actually going on with the story.

I am frustrated about that. There is a great story about Adelaide and her brother Toby somewhere within all this other extra stuff. It’s a story about addiction and family. Even the romance of the story felt like it took away from time I would have rather spent with Adelaide and Toby’s relationship than everything else going on here.

Hopefully, the frustration with Again Again is just a me thing. I hope other readers enjoy what this book has to offer more than I did.