Vampire Academy (Vampire Academy #1) by Richelle Mead

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 out of 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Only a true best friend can protect you from your immortal enemies . . . 
Lissa Dragomir is a Moroi princess: a mortal vampire with a rare gift for harnessing the earth's magic. She must be protected at all times from Strigoi; the fiercest vampires - the ones who never die. The powerful blend of human and vampire blood that flows through Rose Hathaway, Lissa's best friend, makes her a dhampir. Rose is dedicated to a dangerous life of protecting Lissa from the Strigoi, who are hell-bent on making Lissa one of them.

After two years of freedom, Rose and Lissa are caught and dragged back to St. Vladimir's Academy, a school for vampire royalty and their guardians-to-be, hidden in the deep forests of Montana. But inside the iron gates, life is even more fraught with danger . . . and the Strigoi are always close by.

Rose and Lissa must navigate their dangerous world, confront the temptations of forbidden love, and never once let their guard down, lest the evil undead make Lissa one of them forever . . .

I'm so happy that I gave Vampire Academy a chance. When I read a summary about it, I thought that it would just be another run of the mill story about people with powers that go to a school to learn about using said powers. Boy was I wrong! I loved the story! I loved the characters! It was thrilling the whole way through. I honestly was not sure who the culprit was while I was reading although I suspected something was up with one of the characters. I was happy to see that Vampire Academy focused on other relationships besides love interests. I think that one of the most enjoyable parts of the book was the relationship between Rose and Lissa. They are more than just friends. They are sisters. It was nice to see their relationship grow because it added a dynamic to the story that pushed things forward in the book. It also showed the changes that each of them went through as people. I'm excited to see what will happen in the next book. I think that I a few of the things that the author will focus on in the sequel. 

Dead Until Dark (Sookie Stackhouse #1) by Charlaine Harris

🌟🌟🌟🌟 out of 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Sookie Stackhouse is just a small-time cocktail waitress in small-town Louisiana. Until the vampire of her dreams walks into her life-and one of her coworkers checks out....

Maybe having a vampire for a boyfriend isn't such a bright idea.

When I bought this book, I had no idea that the True Blood TV show was based on it and the rest of the series. I had never heard of the series or the author before but I thought that I would give it a try without looking at reviews or anything. 

Dead Until Dark was a fast, exciting read! I thought that the plot was interesting and the author kept me guessing with what was going to happen. I would think that I had the murderer figured out and next thing I knew I was being thrown a curve ball. I enjoyed the lore surrounding vampires and the world building that led to humans knowing about vampires. I thought that the whole concept on bars and fangbangers was interesting and something that I could believe would happen if this was real. 

I'm not sure how I feel about the romance in the book. It was fairly quick and insta-love like. I think that some of that may have to so with the characters. I found quite a few to be bland stereotypes of a small town crowd. I thought that Sookie was a pretty cool character though and I enjoyed being inside of her head. 

Matilda by Roald Dahl, Quentin Blake (Illustrator)

🌟🌟🌟🌟 out of 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Matilda is a little girl who is far too good to be true. At age five-and-a-half she's knocking off double-digit multiplication problems and blitz-reading Dickens. Even more remarkably, her classmates love her even though she's a super-nerd and the teacher's pet. But everything is not perfect in Matilda's world. For starters she has two of the most idiotic, self-centered parents who ever lived. Then there's the large, busty nightmare of a school principal, Miss ("The") Trunchbull, a former hammer-throwing champion who flings children at will and is approximately as sympathetic as a bulldozer. Fortunately for Matilda, she has the inner resources to deal with such annoyances: astonishing intelligence, saintly patience, and an innate predilection for revenge.

She warms up with some practical jokes aimed at her hapless parents, but the true test comes when she rallies in defense of her teacher, the sweet Miss Honey, against the diabolical Trunchbull. There is never any doubt that Matilda will carry the day. Even so, this wonderful story is far from predictable. Roald Dahl, while keeping the plot moving imaginatively, also has an unerring ear for emotional truth. The reader cares about Matilda because in addition to all her other gifts, she has real feelings.

Matilda is a really quick read and entertaining to boot! I thought that the book was really fun and the characters were quirky. I especially loved Matilda because she was much more spunky in the book than she was in the movie. I couldn't help but compare the two as I read it. I feel like this isn't really a case of one being better than the other but rather that they each had pros and cons to them. I enjoyed the English touch to the book that you don't get by watching the Americanized movie. I thought that the book was well paced until the ending. It seemed a bit rushed to me. In the movie, the audience is given background and is in on what has been happening whereas in the book the reader would have no clue other than assuming something might go wrong which would lead to the events at the end of the book. Overall, I enjoyed the story as well as the illustrations and I would read it again!

Scrappy Little Nobody by Anna Kendrick

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 out of 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

A collection of humorous autobiographical essays by the Academy Award-nominated actress and star of Up in the Air and Pitch Perfect.

Even before she made a name for herself on the silver screen starring in films like Pitch Perfect, Up in the Air, Twilight, and Into the Woods, Anna Kendrick was unusually small, weird, and “10 percent defiant.”

At the ripe age of thirteen, she had already resolved to “keep the crazy inside my head where it belonged. Forever. But here’s the thing about crazy: It. Wants. Out.” In Scrappy Little Nobody, she invites readers inside her brain, sharing extraordinary and charmingly ordinary stories with candor and winningly wry observations.

With her razor-sharp wit, Anna recounts the absurdities she’s experienced on her way to and from the heart of pop culture as only she can—from her unusual path to the performing arts (Vanilla Ice and baggy neon pants may have played a role) to her double life as a middle-school student who also starred on Broadway to her initial “dating experiments” (including only liking boys who didn’t like her back) to reviewing a binder full of butt doubles to her struggle to live like an adult woman instead of a perpetual “man-child.”

Enter Anna’s world and follow her rise from “scrappy little nobody” to somebody who dazzles on the stage, the screen, and now the page—with an electric, singular voice, at once familiar and surprising, sharp and sweet, funny and serious (well, not that serious). 

I have loved Anna Kendrick as an actress for a long while. When I started watching her interviews on talk shows I wanted her to be my friend and thought that she might possibility be my spirit animal.  Her personality drew me in and I wanted to know more about her the more than she expressed her opinions and made inappropriate jokes. 

I have recently started getting into biographies and memoirs. When I remembered that she had written a book, I knew I had to read it. If you love Anna Kendrick's personality then you are bound to love her more once you read Scrappy Little Nobody! This book is pure, undiluted Anna. She is hilarious and in your face about her thoughts and opinions on a variety of topics. Not only that but she talks about her path to stardom and her life growing up. I loved getting to hear her voice because she read it the way she wanted it to be heard. 

A Discovery of Witches (All Souls Trilogy #1) by Deborah Harkness

🌟🌟🌟 out of 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Deep in the stacks of Oxford's Bodleian Library, young scholar Diana Bishop unwittingly calls up a bewitched alchemical manuscript in the course of her research. Descended from an old and distinguished line of witches, Diana wants nothing to do with sorcery; so after a furtive glance and a few notes, she banishes the book to the stacks. But her discovery sets a fantastical underworld stirring, and a horde of daemons, witches, and vampires soon descends upon the library. Diana has stumbled upon a coveted treasure lost for centuries-and she is the only creature who can break its spell.

I enjoyed the beginning of Discovery of Witches. It caught my interest right away and I wanted to know more about Diana and why she was so against any form of magic use in her life. I liked her as a character because she intrigued me with her struggles with anxiety, love of history, and her stubbornness. I thought that I was going to be swept away into the story, not returning until it came to an end. The weird part about this book is that it pulls you in even if you don't know why and you just want it to be over. I kept thinking that this part or that part of the story would make a great stopping point for the next book to continue the story but the book feels never-ending. The odd part is that it still managed to keep my interest regardless of me feeling like the book dragged on and on with no end in sight. I wish I could explain how the author was able to maintain my interest and attention but I really have no idea. I don't feel like the book needed to be as long as it was and that portions of it could have been edited out. Since it was able to hold my attention and the book didn't feel like a rehash of something else that had already been written, I gave it three stars. 

Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness by Susannah Cahalan

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 out of 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

An award-winning memoir and instant New York Times bestseller that goes far beyond its riveting medical mystery, Brain on Fire is the powerful account of one woman’s struggle to recapture her identity.

When twenty-four-year-old Susannah Cahalan woke up alone in a hospital room, strapped to her bed and unable to move or speak, she had no memory of how she’d gotten there. Days earlier, she had been on the threshold of a new, adult life: at the beginning of her first serious relationship and a promising career at a major New York newspaper. Now she was labeled violent, psychotic, a flight risk. What happened?

In a swift and breathtaking narrative, Cahalan tells the astonishing true story of her descent into madness, her family’s inspiring faith in her, and the lifesaving diagnosis that nearly didn’t happen.

I absolutely loved this book! I had seen advertisements for the movie which were what initially drew me to it.  Someone told me that Brain On Fire was about a woman with Schizophrenia  which is not necessarily the case.  It is about a woman and her loved ones attempting to navigate her descent into madness without having any clue why. 

I was immediately drawn into Susannah's story from the first page. Her journey was fascinating, gut-wrenching, and powerful in its message of fighting for those you love and for yourself even when you no longer recognize that person anymore. I hope that everyone reads this book not only for the important messages but to understand more about medical science. We have come a long way but doctors can still take a dangerously long period of time to diagnose and treat illnesses. 

The only negative remark I can make in that there were points in the book when I became a little overwhelmed with facts and figures to do with different diagnoses and illnesses. That being said, the information added to the book as well to show the frustration and danger involved. 

Glass Sword (Red Queen #2) by Victoria Aveyard

🌟🌟🌟🌓 out of 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

If there’s one thing Mare Barrow knows, it’s that she’s different.

Mare Barrow’s blood is red—the color of common folk—but her Silver ability, the power to control lightning, has turned her into a weapon that the royal court tries to control.

The crown calls her an impossibility, a fake, but as she makes her escape from Maven, the prince—the friend—who betrayed her, Mare uncovers something startling: she is not the only one of her kind.

Pursued by Maven, now a vindictive king, Mare sets out to find and recruit other Red-and-Silver fighters to join in the struggle against her oppressors.

But Mare finds herself on a deadly path, at risk of becoming exactly the kind of monster she is trying to defeat.

Will she shatter under the weight of the lives that are the cost of rebellion? Or have treachery and betrayal hardened her forever?

The electrifying next installment in the Red Queen series escalates the struggle between the growing rebel army and the blood-segregated world they’ve always known—and pits Mare against the darkness that has grown in her soul. 

Glass Sword didn't have the same kind of pacing as Red Queen. It was much slower than I had anticipated. I had thought that since Red Queen ends at such an explosive moment that that momentum would carry over to an even faster pacing in Glass Sword. The majority of the book is dedicated to Mare focusing her attention on finding and recruiting other individuals like herself with abilities that are out of the norm. There are bits of action scattered throughout the book but it doesn't help to improve the pacing. I still enjoyed the story but I feel like it fell a bit flat. I also didn't understand the ending because it seemed so abrupt. There didn't appear to be any lead up or explanation for how things progressed to that point. Overall, I felt as if the story didn't really progress the plot enough and seemed to go in circles. I would have liked to have seen more character growth and greater changes in the world. 

The Long Game (The Fixer #2) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌓 out of 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

The Kendricks help make the problems of the Washington elite disappear…but some secrets won’t stay buried.

For Tess Kendrick, a junior at the elite Hardwicke School in Washington, D.C., fixing runs in the family. But Tess has another legacy, too, one that involves power and the making of political dynasties. When Tess is asked to run a classmate’s campaign for student council, she agrees. But when the candidates are children of politicians, even a high school election can involve life-shattering secrets.

Meanwhile, Tess’s guardian has also taken on an impossible case, as a terrorist attack calls into doubt who can—and cannot—be trusted on Capitol Hill. Tess knows better than most that power is currency in D.C., but she's about to discover firsthand that power always comes with a price.

I thought that this book would be a continuation of the first in finding out who the missing player was so to speak. There was an element of that but The Long Game seemed to focus more on a different issue. I didn't mind this as it made for an interesting book but I would have liked for the book to focus solely on the unanswered questions from The Fixer.  Some of the revelations were shocking and I have to admit that I was disappointed with who ended up being uncovered as a bad guy. I thought that the ending was interesting but I wish that it would have been wrapped up better unless the author left it open intentionally with the thought of writing a third book. If that is the case then I am excited to read it! I can understand why she ended it that way. It does make the book feel more realistic. All in all I really enjoyed the book and I think that I may re-read it in the future. 

The Fixer (The Fixer #1) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 out of 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Sixteen-year-old Tess Kendrick has spent her entire life on her grandfather's ranch. But when her estranged sister Ivy uproots her to D.C., Tess is thrown into a world that revolves around politics and power. She also starts at Hardwicke Academy, the D.C. school for the children of the rich and powerful, where she unwittingly becomes a fixer for the high school set, fixing teens’ problems the way her sister fixes their parents’ problems.

And when a conspiracy surfaces that involves the family member of one of Tess's classmates, love triangles and unbelievable family secrets come to light and life gets even more interesting—and complicated—for Tess.

I'm not usually drawn to books with such a focus on political intrigue and veiled threats from powerful figures. They tend to bore me because I find that I need more action in a book rather than a lot of talking between characters. That being said, I have loved Jennifer Lynn Barnes's other books that I have read so I decided to give The Fixer a chance. I'm so happy that I did because this book was fantastic! 

In typical Jennifer Lynn Barnes fashion the book was thrilling from beginning to end with the main character unsure of what she was getting herself into and who she could trust with information she uncovered. I knew that I loved Tess as soon as she stood up for someone else regardless of the repercussions to herself in the beginning of the book. She had an inner strength that I really enjoyed right away. She genuinely cared about others and how they were treated. I also liked her sister even though they seemed to be opposite of each other. I found myself wanting to know more about Ivy and how her views on issues became so gray rather than black and white. 

The story itself was well done with perfect pacing. I loved how the author kept me guessing the whole way through as to who was behind the conspiracy. Jennifer Lynn Barnes is one of the only authors who can do that which is exciting for me. There is a sequel to The Fixer so the ending leaves some questions unanswered but it excited me rather than bothering me. I'm looking forward to reading The Long Game to find out how the story continues. 

American Gods (American Gods #1) by Neil Gaiman

🌟🌟🌟 out of 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Shadow is a man with a past. But now he wants nothing more than to live a quiet life with his wife and stay out of trouble. Until he learns that she's been killed in a terrible accident.

Flying home for the funeral, as a violent storm rocks the plane, a strange man in the seat next to him introduces himself. The man calls himself Mr. Wednesday, and he knows more about Shadow than is possible.

He warns Shadow that a far bigger storm is coming. And from that moment on, nothing will ever be the same…

American Gods is a unique, well written novel depicting how much importance society puts on things like media, sex, and religion. It seems to symbolize how the focus has shifted from religion to more worldly ideals. I thought that these ideals were interesting but not enough to keep me invested in the book. 

The book starts off well enough but it soon becomes difficult to understand the direction that the author is going with it. I kept asking myself when Neil Gaiman was going to get to the point rather than continuing to add new information to sift through. I felt like I was on a ride that keeps going in circles rather than having thrilling twists and turns and an eventual end to it. I grew tired of the book by page 200 and then only read until the end because I had already invested so much time into reading it. I also began watching the TV show and didn't want to be confused by anything that happens in it. 

I think that the author was trying to put readers in Shadow's place by having us be just as confused and out of the loop as he was. It was frustrating enough to have to cope with being confused and unsure of where the story was going. Neil Gaiman adds another element of confusion by having side stories of other characters from the present and past that I don't feel added anything to the story at all. It seems like all the side stories added was more of a sexual component to the book. I'm not a prude or anything but all of the sexual scenes felt odd and made me somewhat uncomfortable. I know that the Gods were supposedly very sexual beings but enough is enough! Each of the side stories distracted from the main story and only served to confuse and stall the story as a whole. 

I was really disappointed by American Gods because I thought that I was going to love it because it seemed to have all of the elements that I enjoy in a story. It was unique, had interesting characters, included gods, and was written by an author that is known world wide. I felt that I had to give the book three stars for some of those reasons alone not to mention that the writing is well done. 

Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn

🌟🌟🌟🌟 out of 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Fresh from a brief stay at a psych hospital, reporter Camille Preaker faces a troubling assignment: she must return to her tiny hometown to cover the murders of two preteen girls. For years, Camille has hardly spoken to her neurotic, hypochondriac mother or to the half-sister she barely knows: a beautiful thirteen-year-old with an eerie grip on the town. Now, installed in her old bedroom in her family's Victorian mansion, Camille finds herself identifying with the young victims—a bit too strongly. Dogged by her own demons, she must unravel the psychological puzzle of her own past if she wants to get the story—and survive this homecoming. 

Sharp Objects is my first Gillian Flynn book. I became interested in her writing after seeing the movie adaptation of her novel Gone Girl. I wasn't sure what to expect from her writing other than it being dark and thrilling. 

I really enjoyed the tone of the book. It was, in fact, very dark and twisted. The characters are all flawed in some way especially the main characters. I sympathized with Camille even though I didn't agree with her actions half of the time. She seemed to bring about some of her issues because of the choices that she made. I couldn't blame her though since we get to meet her mother during the book and she is lucky she turned out as well as she did with a mother like that train wreck. I thought that Gillian did an excellent job of weaving the story and casting suspicion on different people. She reminded me of a darker Agatha Christie in a way. I was able to deduce who the murderer was fairly early on in the book but that didn't deter me from devouring the book. It was interesting to see the inner workings of a small town and family life in a small town that Gillian portrayed. It added quite a bit to the novel in that people in the town reacted differently whether they were born and raised there or not.

Like I said earlier, I haven't read any other books from this author but I believe that she is a lot like the director of Gone Girl (David Fincher) in that she doesn't necessarily wrap things up with a pretty bow. The endings of her stories seem to be different from the norm which makes them intriguing but hard to swallow. I see myself reading more of her work in the future due to the darkness and unique style that is all her own. 

Orphan Island by Laurel Snyder

🌟🌟 out of 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

On the island, everything is perfect. The sun rises in a sky filled with dancing shapes; the wind, water, and trees shelter and protect those who live there; when the nine children go to sleep in their cabins, it is with full stomachs and joy in their hearts. And only one thing ever changes: on that day, each year, when a boat appears from the mist upon the ocean carrying one young child to join them—and taking the eldest one away, never to be seen again.

Today’s Changing is no different. The boat arrives, taking away Jinny’s best friend, Deen, replacing him with a new little girl named Ess, and leaving Jinny as the new Elder. Jinny knows her responsibility now—to teach Ess everything she needs to know about the island, to keep things as they’ve always been. But will she be ready for the inevitable day when the boat will come back—and take her away forever from the only home she’s known?

Initially, I thought that I was going to like this book. It seemed so different in the beginning that I became curious with the direction that the author would take the book in. Will Jinny fight her fate? Will she make the same choice that Deen did? I wasn't sure what was going to happen but I was excited to find out. I found that as the book progressed I liked it less and less. I found Jinny to be selfish and impatient. I didn't understand why she seemed to only think of herself even though there were so many other children on the island with her. I also did not like how whenever something happens all of the characters sound like broken records. They don't offer up any new dialogue. They just say the same things over and over.  I think that one of the things that annoyed me the most about the book was the ending. I don't feel like there was one. I wanted answers and some sort of closure. I have read in other reviews that that wasn't the point to the story. That it was supposed to be a metaphor for growing up but that just isn't enough for me. The book was fine for what it was but I don't think that it was for me. 

Murder on the Orient Express (Hercule Poirot, #10) by Agatha Christie

🌟🌟🌟 out of 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

What more can a mystery addict desire than a much-loathed murder victim found aboard the luxurious Orient Express with multiple stab wounds, thirteen likely suspects, an incomparably brilliant detective in Hercule Poirot, and the most ingenious crime ever conceived?

I know that I had said that I probably wouldn't be reading any more Agatha Christie books due to the dated language but I changed my mind. I became curious about her other books because of just how good I found And Then There Were None to be. I'm not going to lie. I found this book for a dollar at a thrift store as well so it didn't take much to convince me to buy it and read it. 

Even though I found that I didn't like Murder on the Orient Express as much as And Then There Were None, it was still a well done book. It had an ending that was delightfully unexpected due to the well crafted nature of the story. Christie does a great job casting her set of characters and plotting out details well enough to have a reader guessing until the end. I enjoyed the smallest details that she put in the story for each character and how she was able to cast suspicion on many of them. There came a point about halfway through the book when I was able to figure out who did it but was still able to thoroughly enjoy the experience. I love a great murder mystery and she checks all of my boxes! She may have converted me to her writing after all!

Balance (Off Balance #1) by Lucia Franco

🌟🌟 out of 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Adrianna Rossi is no stranger to the rigorous demands required of her body. Years of pain and determination make her one of the best. Olympic glory is the ultimate goal, and she'll do anything to achieve it. Even if that means leaving home to attend World Cup Academy of Gymnastics, a training center that serves one purpose—producing champions. 

Perfection, precision, and dedication are required of his athletes. When two time Olympian Konstantin Kournakova is persuaded into training the young hopeful, he immediately regrets it. She doesn't come close to his high standards. As the relentless pursuit of her dream keeps her striving, a passion is ignited within him.

Kova's power and domination, coupled with Adrianna's fierce tenacity, reveal there is more for her body to learn. Every interaction can be misconstrued, but there’s no mistaking the darkening of his gaze, the lingering of his touch, or the illicit image of his bare skin pressed against hers. Integrity is on the line. One toe off the beam and their forbidden desires could ruin everything they’ve worked for, throwing it all off balance. 

I originally picked this book up due to it being recommended to me after I read From Lukov, With Love by Mariana Zapata. I thought that it might be similar to that or better which made me feel that I would really enjoy it. Unfortunately, it was not meant to be. I have tried and failed to finish this book for over a month now. I finally decided to just throw in the towel. I should mention that I don't think that it is a poorly written book but I had too many problems with it to be able to finish it. 
I'll start with the characters. I didn't like either one of the main characters which made it hard to care or empathize with them. Each of them clearly have issues especially Kova. I felt that Adrianna was naive, selfish, and ignorant. She doesn't seem to care about how her actions affect others  or maybe she doesn't comprehend the gravity of said actions. Frankly it was hard to tell which it was as I was reading. She didn't strike me as the mature type even though I think that is exactly what the author was trying to convey with this character. I liked Kova even less than Adrianna. He was cruel and seemed to be driven by lust alone. I'm guessing that readers of this book are supposed to see that he cares for Adrianna and she for him but I didn't buy it. He seemed to get off on her pain and the control that she gave him. 
This leads me to my next problem with the book. I didn't buy into the relationship between the two of them. I felt some of the chemistry between them physically but there was nothing else there. I needed more from both sides of it. I have trouble reading a book wherein each party within a relationship is only hurting the other regardless of seeing what this does to the other. In my opinion, that isn't romance it is abuse. 
I was disappointed because I really wanted to like this but I just couldn't get into it. I had too many issues with the direction that the author took it in as well as the characters. I didn't feel that either of them had any redeeming qualities. 

The Sea of Tranquility by Katja Millay

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 out of 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

I live in a world without magic or miracles. A place where there are no clairvoyants or shapeshifters, no angels or superhuman boys to save you. A place where people die and music disintegrates and things suck. I am pressed so hard against the earth by the weight of reality that some days I wonder how I am still able to lift my feet to walk.

Former piano prodigy Nastya Kashnikov wants two things: to get through high school without anyone learning about her past and to make the boy who took everything from her—her identity, her spirit, her will to live—pay.

Josh Bennett’s story is no secret: every person he loves has been taken from his life until, at seventeen years old, there is no one left. Now all he wants is be left alone and people allow it because when your name is synonymous with death, everyone tends to give you your space.

Everyone except Nastya, the mysterious new girl at school who starts showing up and won’t go away until she’s insinuated herself into every aspect of his life. But the more he gets to know her, the more of an enigma she becomes. As their relationship intensifies and the unanswered questions begin to pile up, he starts to wonder if he will ever learn the secrets she’s been hiding—or if he even wants to.

The Sea of Tranquility is a rich, intense, and brilliantly imagined story about a lonely boy, an emotionally fragile girl, and the miracle of second chances.

I meant to read this book years ago when I first heard about it. I thought that it was an interesting premise in that each of the characters in the story appeared to be flawed from the get go. I am a sucker for flawed characters because I find that it makes them more relatable and realistic. 

I enjoyed each of the characters and being able to get both of their points of view in the book because it added depth to each of them. The author was able to present things in such a way that when one of the main characters was thinking about the other readers were introduced to the character in a different way. It showed the way that they were not only perceived by others but also the small details that the other character was able to notice that others may not have seen. I especially liked Nastya and that may be due to her being the main focus of the story. I found her reactions to her issues to be fascinating. Every chapter felt like discovering another layer to her and how she has changed as a result of her trauma. Josh was no slouch as a character either but I think that his purpose was to be a balance regardless of his own issues due to the extreme nature of Nastya's problem. I have not read a book with a character that goes through what Nastya did which helped the book to feel more novel than others. 

I appreciated how the author did not have the characters heal and/or fix each other. This seems to be a theme in a lot of books out there and I don't feel like that is realistic. It can happen for some but I think that in many of the relationships with people with issues a relationship can add stress to their lives rather than healing. There were no magical fixes in the book and I loved that. I'm not saying that the book is depressing or has an unsatisfying ending. I feel that the ending of the book was appropriate and showed the respect that this particular author has for readers.