Category: Review

Review: The Almost Truth by Eileen Cook

January 18, 2013 / 27 Comments / Posted by Tiff @ Mostly YA Lit in Review, Uncategorized
Review: The Almost Truth by Eileen Cook

The Almost Truth Author: Eileen Cook Publisher: Simon Pulse Publication Date: December 12, 2012 Format: Hardcover borrowed from Toronto Public Library My rating: 4.75 out of 5 stars Synopsis:  From Goodreads: From the author of Unraveling Isobel and The Education of Hailey Kendrick, a smart, romantic novel about a teenage con artist who might be in over her head. Sadie can’t wait to get away from her backwards small town, her delusional mom, her jailbird dad, and the tiny trailer where she was raised…even though leaving those things behind also means leaving Brendan. Sadie wants a better life, and she has […]

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Review: Janie Face to Face by Caroline B. Cooney

January 15, 2013 / 7 Comments / Posted by Tiff @ Mostly YA Lit in Review, Uncategorized
Review: Janie Face to Face by Caroline B. Cooney

Janie Face to Face Author: Caroline B. Cooney Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers Source: Netgalley eARC Publication date: January 8, 2013 My rating: 3 out of 5 stars Synopsis:  In the final installment of the Face on the Milk Carton series, Janie is twenty, a sophomore in college, and trying to put the kidnapping behind her. She’s made amends with her New Jersey family, while her “kidnap” family has wasted away – her kidnap father Frank has had a stroke and can barely communicate, and her kidnap mother Miranda has moved into a nursing home with him. Janie feels that she’s trying to decide […]

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Review: Winter White by Jen Calonita (Belles #2)

January 4, 2013 / 10 Comments / Posted by Tiff @ Mostly YA Lit in Review, Uncategorized
Review: Winter White by Jen Calonita (Belles #2)

Winter White Author: Jen Calonita Publisher: Poppy Publication date: October 9, 2012 Format: Hardcover, 368 pages Source: Borrowed from library My rating: 4 of 5 stars Synopsis:  This installment of the Belles series starts with the Monroe family on an Oprah-like TV special talking about their reactions to the news that Izzie is Bill’s daughter. Despite appearing to be taking everything in stride, inside, Mira and Izzie are both pretty distressed over their father’s lies. This, however, brings them closer together, and makes them team up to fight off the rumours, messes, and crazy of Emerald Cove. In Winter White, the […]

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Review: The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

December 31, 2012 / 19 Comments / Posted by Tiff @ Mostly YA Lit in Review, Uncategorized
Review: The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

The Fault in Our Stars Author: John Green Publisher: Dutton Books Format: Hardcover, 313 pages Source: Belated birthday present from my soon-to-be sister/brother-in-law My rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars Goodreads synopsis: Diagnosed with Stage IV thyroid cancer at 13, Hazel was prepared to die until, at 14, a medical miracle shrunk the tumours in her lungs… for now. Two years post-miracle, sixteen-year-old Hazel is post-everything else, too; post-high school, post-friends and post-normalcy. And even though she could live for a long time (whatever that means), Hazel lives tethered to an oxygen tank, the tumours tenuously kept at bay with a […]

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Review: Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone

December 20, 2012 / 18 Comments / Posted by Tiff @ Mostly YA Lit in Review, Uncategorized
Review: Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone

Time Between Us  Author: Tamara Ireland Stone Publisher: Hyperion Books Publication date: Oct 9, 2012 My rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars Summary:  Anna is a 16-year old living in Evanston, Illinois in 1996. Bennett is a 16-year old time-traveler who exists in San Francisco in 2012. At the beginning of the novel, a woman (whom we can easily presume is 32-year old Anna) goes to Bennett in San Francisco and gives him a letter. As you can already tell, this is a love that will be fraught with problems. Anna and Bennett meet for the first time in 1996 when […]

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Review + Giveaway: Rampant & Ascendant by Diana Peterfreund!

November 25, 2012 / 18 Comments / Posted by Tiff @ Mostly YA Lit in Feature, Review
Review + Giveaway: Rampant & Ascendant by Diana Peterfreund!

Happy Thanksgiving/Black Friday/Cyber Monday to my American friends! For this week’s Birthday Month Author Spotlight on Diana Peterfreund, I have reviews of Diana’s Killer Unicorn books for you – and a couple of signed books to give away! Rampant  Author: Diana Peterfreund Publisher: HarperTeen Publication date: Aug 25, 2009 My rating: 4 out of 5 stars Review: Rampant starts with what I call the classic horror movie sequence – the baby-sitter making out with her boyfriend, then getting attacked – but turned on its head. Because Astrid, our heroine, isn’t some dumb blonde – she’s a teen scientist who wants to […]

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Review: Eldritch Manor by Kim Thompson

November 19, 2012 / 7 Comments / Posted by Tiff @ Mostly YA Lit in Review, Uncategorized
Review: Eldritch Manor by Kim Thompson

Eldritch Manor Author: Kim Thompson Publisher: Dundurn Press Format: Paperback, 176 pages (a finished copy was provided by Dundurn Press) Publication date: October 23, 2012 My rating: 3.5 stars out of 5 stars. From Goodreads:  Twelve-year-old Willa Fuller is convinced that the old folks in the shabby boarding house down the street are prisoners of their sinister landlady, Miss Trang. Only when Willa is hired on as housekeeper does she discover the truth, which is far more fascinating. Eldritch Manor is a retirement home for some very strange beings indeed. All have stories to tell — and petty grievances with one […]

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Review: My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece by Annabel Pitcher

November 15, 2012 / 9 Comments / Posted by Tiff @ Mostly YA Lit in Review, Uncategorized
Review: My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece by Annabel Pitcher

My Sister Lives On The Mantelpiece Author: Annabel Pitcher Format: Hardcover, 211 pages Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers Publication date: March 2012 My rating: 4 of 5 stars From Goodreads: Ten-year-old Jamie hasn’t cried since it happened. He knows he should have – Jasmine cried, Mum cried, Dad still cries. Roger didn’t, but then he is just a cat and didn’t know Rose that well, really. Everyone kept saying it would get better with time, but that’s just one of those lies that grown-ups tell in awkward situations. Five years on, it’s worse than ever: Dad drinks, Mum’s gone and […]

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Birthday Month Author Spotlight: Review and Giveaway of the Secret Society Girl series by Diana Pete..

November 14, 2012 / 22 Comments / Posted by Tiff @ Mostly YA Lit in Favorites, Feature, Review
Birthday Month Author Spotlight: Review and Giveaway of the Secret Society Girl series by Diana Peterfreund!

Hi guys, welcome to Part 2 of my Birthday Month Author Spotlight on Diana Peterfreund! Today I have a review of the Secret Society Girl series for you, which includes: 1. Secret Society Girl 2. Under the Rose 3. Rites of Spring (Break) 4. Tap & Gown Ok, caveat: These are some of my favorite books EVER. Basically, if you like any combination of old-school college/university settings, secret societies, feminism, and really sexy romantic scenes, I can pretty much guarantee that you’ll be sold on this. How it starts: Amy is a junior at elite Eli University (clearly modelled after Yale University, where Diana […]

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Review: For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund

November 6, 2012 / 18 Comments / Posted by Tiff @ Mostly YA Lit in Feature, Review
Review: For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund

  This is my second time reading this book, and it was such a different experience than the first. I had mixed feelings the first time because of my obsession love of all things Austen. I spent a lot of time trying to figure out who was who and what matched up with what. Not the best way to approach a new book – as an aside, I think that’s often the reason why a lot of people end up not liking movies of books. It’s important to have a little distance from the work at hand.I promised myself I […]

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