Love and First Sight by Josh Sundquist || Book Review

Book: Love and First Sight

Author: Josh Sundquist

Release Date: January 3rd, 2017

Published: Little, Brown and Company 

Genres: YA Contemporary 

Format: Hardback

Pages: 272

Goodreads Description 

Hey y'all!! 

This month I'm going to be a guest host for Contemporary Corner and I am so thankful they asked me to guest host on this month. This months book, Love and First Sight, has been one of my most anticipated reads since Josh announced he was working on his first fictional novel and it did not disappoint! 

 Love and First Sight follows Will, a blind 16 year old who decides he wants to go to a mainstream high school after spending his entire school career at a boarding school for the blind. He makes friends and even starts falling for a girl in his journalism class, Cecily. After an experimental surgery gives Will the opportunity to see for the first time he learns that his friends weren't honest with him and that Cecily may not be the most traditionally beautiful girl.

I loved this book!! It was fun, insightful, beautiful, and eye opening. I loved the characters, the story, the scenery, and most of all the message. When Will is experiencing sight for the first time he gives the most detailed, yet basic, descriptions giving the reader time to take a moment and think about the colors and shapes of things they see on an every day basis. 

While this book primarily focuses on Will and his blindness we see so much personality from him, he's not just the blind kid. We see his love for journalism and his sarcastic nature when people ask questions about his blindness. We also see his fear for fitting in and being 'normal' while also seeing his confidence in navigating the school after being shown his classes. 

I do wish it was longer but I usually wish YA contemporary were longer. I want more time with these characters and this story! I want to see Will and Cecil in their remaining time in high school. I want to see more game nights. I want to see more family bike rides. I just want more. 

This book was a very quick read. I almost read the entire book in one sitting. Had I not needed to go to bed for work I would have. I don't read books in one day very often, luckily I've been reading some magnificent books lately that I have been able to read in one or two sittings. I simply did not want to put Love and First Sight down!!

 Further more, Love and First Sight made me laugh out loud, it made me warm and fuzzy, gave me hope, made me see things in a new way, and also made me a bit teary eyed. Anyone who loves a good YA contemporary should check this book out! Love and First Sight is insightful, funny, heart breaking, and an all around great read. 

Goodbye 2016, Hello 2017

Happy New Year!!!!

After what seems like a never ending year, we have finally entered into 2017! There were a handful of posts and videos I had planned on creating for the end of the year but time got away from me and here I am writing this instead.

What I'm aiming for this post to be is a collective of things I liked about 2016 and my hopes for the future.

2016 Reflection

Yes, 2016 has been a long and rough year but I've had some amazing times this year and I don't think they should be blanketed under the ideation that this past year has been nothing but horrible.

This past year I have met more authors than I ever thought I would, I have been to some amazing events (musicals, sporting events, book events), and I've even been able to meet some of my best internet friends in real life! I've gotten to travel, granted not very far but more than I typically do in a year. I've gotten closer to some friends and made new ones along the way. My signed book collection is vastly growing and I love it! My Funko PoP! collection is also getting out of control but I love that as well. The Blues finally got a Winter Classic, and in their 50th year no less! Last, but certainly not least, I've rediscovered some of the things I love that had gotten away from me (crochet, sewing, crafting ect...).

I read about 92 books this past year, a handful of those were rereads and the majority of them were audiobooks. Yes, that is less than I read in 2015 but I'm okay with it because I haven't been feeling like reading lately and I've been extremely busy.

I started keeping a spreadsheet of all the books I read but gave up on that sometime in August, so sadly I don't have any specific statistics that I wish I had.

I went to BookCon for the first time this past year and completely loved it!! Unfortunately I don't think I can go in 2017, although I had initially planned on it, but I am planning on going to YALL Fest and SEYA Fest instead.

I became a season ticket holder at The Fabulous Fox Theater in St. Louis and have enjoyed the shows so far. Can't wait to see the rest of the shows and renew our tickets for the 2017-2018 season.

Other than big events this year has also been great with getting to know my friends better as well as making some new friends along the way. I was also able to meet up with some friends I don't see very often, which it's always nice to catch up.

All in all, 2016 was pretty great for me when I take a step back and appreciate the positives. While I had some great times in 2016, I'm more than excited to start a new year.

To the Future

I'm feeling inspired for 2017 and I hope that feeling continues throughout the year. I feel like I was in a slump pretty much all throughout 2016, in both reading and making content. Yes, I read near 100 books but as mentioned most of those were audio books. I've noticed that a lot of my free time is taken up my mindlessly looking at my phone for hours on end and I'd like to change that. The following are things I plan on doing to have a more positive and stress free year.

1. Focus more on reading physically.
           I'd like to take at least half an hour a day to read in either a physical book or an ebook. I've set my Goodreads goal at 12 and I'd like that number to be met by physical books.

2. Utilize my ereader and tablet more.
            I have a handful of ebooks that I have yet to read and I really do enjoy reading on my ereader. Also want to use my tablet more for blog posts. I don't get on my laptop all that often and using my tablet will help me keep up with posts.

3. Set time aside for hobbies.
            I've rediscovered my love for crochet and I have a few projects in mind for the year. More on those later. I also want to color more and start sewing again. One last hobby I want to focus on is gaming. I got a Xbox for Christmas and I want to make time to play games on it as well as some of my new 3DS games (still need to finish Pokemon Moon).

4. Less time on my phone.
            I'm going to try and incorporate techniques I used in college to stress less and spend time on other things. I'm going try and be off my phone no later than 8pm, earlier would be nice too, and completely stay off it on most Sunday's. Now if I'm going to be out or have something planned then obviously I won't stay off electronics all together, but for the most part I'm going to try and stay off my phone and computer on Sunday's and use that day to focus on reading and other hobbies.

5. Do what makes me happy.
          Simple right? I pretty much already do the things I enjoy, but this year I want to focus more on the positives of things and less on stress. I want to stick to my plans and if I have a certain time blocked out for myself I want to stick with it and not be so easily distracted by last minuet plans or social media.

Basically I want this year to be less controlled by technology while also utilizing the technology I'e been neglecting. Sounds crazy! Overall I hope this is a reading and hobby filled year! I also have at least three small trips planned, maybe four, and hopefully it will be another great year for author signings.

Hope you all have a fantastic 2017!

Until next time,

<3 Gina

Crochet Corner || A New Series

Hey y'all!

It's been awhile since I've posted but I'm still here and ready to start making more posts!

A quick reading update:

I haven't been reading much at all, in fact I only read three books last month: A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, You're Never Weird on the Internet by Felicia Day (a reread), and Scrappy Little Nobody by Anna Kendrick.

I'm hoping to start on Jay Asher's book What Light in the next few days and also work on finally finishing My True Love Gave to Me since Christmas is upon us and they are both Christmas reads. Other than those I am currently listening to Gemina on audio and loving every moment of it!

Now onto the new things!

I recently posted a video on my channel all about crochet and some of the projects I've been working on recently. You can check it out here. So I thought it would be good to also have a text based companion for those videos where I can give updates on what I'm working on and what I plan to work on.

For now I'm working on some Disney Princess and Rudolph amigurumi. I have made Belle, Rapunzel and Bumble so far, all of which can be seen in the video posted above.

I will be making a 2017 plans post within the next few weeks as I come up with ideas of what I want to work on in the following year and I can't wait to share it with everyone!

That's all I have for now, hope you're having a fantastic day!!

Until next time,

Gina

Jump Into November

Hey y'all!

It's been a while since I've updated with a review so I thought I'd make a post about some things I've been reading, but not reviewing, and some of my November plans!

While I've been wanting to do a review for everything I read (and movies I see in theaters) time has gotten away from me. I've read a few things lately that I haven't reviewed but most of them are things I don't think I could properly review.

I've listened to a few audiobook memoirs, a sequel, and a book that one really can't describe.

The memoirs:

The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo by Amy Schumer (3/5 Stars)
     This book was enjoyable but not the best celebrity memoir I've read. I felt like she was trying too hard in some places and kept bouncing back and forth between emotional moments and her comedy style too often.

Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology by Leah Remini (5/5 Stars)
       This memoir however, I loved! I would recommend this to anyone who is a fan of hers but also to anyone interested in learning a little bit more about Scientology. I was very intrigued with Leah's story and found myself not wanting to put the audiobook down. Having her read it was an added bonus for you can hear in her voice some of the annoyance she has/had with certain aspects of the church and her experience with it and the people in it. I even found myself in a black hole of Leah's Dancing with the Stars dances.

Binge by Tyler Oakley (4/5 Stars)
     I enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would. Not being a huge fan of Tyler's I was only slightly interested in his book. Having access to the audio is what eventually led to me picking it up. Another factor that led to me reading this now was that I did enjoy watching him on The Amazing Race. Most, if not all, of the stories in this book were new information to me and I was pleasantly surprised by how much I loved this book. Just like with Leah's book, I found myself in a Tyler Oakley black hole on YouTube and I loved every moment of it.

The other two books I've read but haven't reviewed are:

A Torch Against the Night  by Sabaa Tahir (4/5 Stars)
       This is the sequel to An Ember in the Ashes and I loved it just the same! I do think this book fell into a tiny bit of second book syndrome but for the most part I was fully emerged in the story and didn't want it to end.

Multiple Choice By Alejandro Zambra (4/5 Stars)
      The only thing I can say about this book is that it is extremely unique and told in the form of a standardized test (eek!! I know!!). I really loved this and read it within an hour car ride and that's all I can really say about it. It's hard to summarize but it had me laughing out loud and gave me the feels.


The last week or so I've been a bit slumpy with reading. I'm currently working on about three physical reads and two audio books. I'm just not feeling like them at the moment so who knows how that's going to pan out.

I do plan on finishing Water for Elephants by the 17th however, it's my local book store's book of the month for book club. I'm actually looking forward to reading this one so I hope it doesn't disappoint.

I'm also buddy reading More Happy than Not with Brittany over at BrittanysBookNook. So far I'm really enjoying it!!

Aside form those two specific books I have nothing planned. As I've mentioned before I'm a mood reader so I guess stick around and see what I pick up!!

I know the next few weekends I won't be physically reading too much because the St. Louis International Film Festival will be going on!! I haven't talked about movies too much but I really do enjoy them. I even considered changing my major to Film at one point in time. This weekend I'll be seeing three films with my friend Mike (Mike's Screen Thoughts) so I'm hoping to have at least one post wrapping up those three films.

As far as non-book/non-movie related things going on this month I really just plan on getting a start on Christmas shopping! I love gifting and Christmas is the perfect time to spoil those you love! I'm also participating in multiple Secret Santa exchanges and those are also so much fun!! So along with shopping and card writing I'll also be making homemade crochet presents as well!! (Follow me on Instagram to see updates in my Instagram story!!)

So that's all I have for now, hope you guys are having a fantastic day!!

Until next time,

Gina

Our Chemical Hearts by Krystal Sutherland || BOOK REVIEW

Book: Our Chemical Hearts

Author: Krystal Sutherland

Release Date: October 2016

Published: G.P. Putnam's Sons Books

Genres: YA Contemporary 

Format: Hardback

Pages: 313

Goodreads Description

This. Book. Was. AMAZING! 

I breezed through this book in almost one sitting which isn't very common for me. I haven't read a physical book from start to finish since July and this was one I could not put down! 

From debut author, Krystal Sutherland, comes this amazingly realistic love story. Our Chemical Hearts is not your typical YA love story and I think that's one of the reasons I loved it so much! The characters, the plot, the geeky references; they all make this book so amazing. 

On goodreads, the first line of the description is as follows: "John Green meets Rainbow Rowell in this irresistible story of first love, broken hearts, and the golden seams that put them back together again." I was excited for this book because of this quote and it did not let me down. 

Our Chemical Hearts follows Henry Page and his senior year of high school. This year, more specifically the first few months, are filled with first love, being editor of the newpaper, and dealing with life that involves more than playing video games with his friends and grades. One day a new student walks into his drama class late, walking with a cane, and dressed completely like a boy. This student is Grace Page. When Grace and Henry are both chosen as editor of the school newspaper Henry starts falling for this mystery girl. 

We see the ups and downs of a new crush and the beginning stages of a relationship. We also see the anxiety of liking someone and not knowing if they like you back as well as the anxiety and worry about someone you care deeply for. We also get to see heartbreak. Unlike a lot of YA contemporary books this book takes you through a range of real emotions and makes you think. 

Having met Krystal and listening to her talk about this book made me enjoy it that much more! I loved the wide range of characters we got with this book. The overly Aussie Australian, the biracial lesbian best friend, the wacky and loving parents, the once beautiful now strange girl and our leading man, the intelligent boy who loves his friends and family. 

Henry's parents were my favorite in this book! They're so loving and understanding to their son and are also completely weird and embarrassing to him as well. 

Grace Town is very mysterious and suffering internally. I won't go into it much but I really appreciated her character and loved the complete arc that she had. 

Lola, La, is one of Henry's best friends and is completely awesome! She's there for Henry and Murray, Muz, but she also knows when she needs to step in and do something. Murray is the overly dramatic friend who lathers on the fact that he's originally from Australia. I love him and his relationship with Henry. I also love the fact that between these three friends they are all equally open with each others families as well. 

And then we have Henry Page. Oh Henry. How I adore you sweet Henry Page. Henry is very caring and very nerdy. I fell in love with him from the first moment we met him and I feel for him so much. 

There is so much more I could say about this book, but I'm going to leave it here to avoid spoilers. This book very quickly became one of my favorites and I am already looking forward to rereading it at some point in the future! It's emotional, it's heartbreaking, and it's everything I didn't know I wanted!! 

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher || Book Review

Book: Thirteen Reasons Why

Author: Jay Asher

Release Date: October 2007

Published: RazorBill - Penguin Books

Genres: YA Contembory 

Format: Audiobook

Narrator: Debra Wiseman and Joel Johnstone

Length: 6 hr. and 24 min

Pages: 336

Goodreads Description

This book has been on my radar since it first came out when I was in high school. Because of the subject matter I was always put off and unsure of how it would handle the subject. I finally picked this up for a couple of reasons; everyone loves it and Jay Asher is coming to town on tour of his new novel, of which I read the first chapter and adored. 

Thirteen Reasons Why tells the story of why Hannah Baker killed herself. Our main character, Clay Jensen, receives a box full of audio tapes and when he starts listening to them he discovers that they are tapes that had been recorded by his crush Hannah shortly before she died. 

This book is told from Clay's point of view but we get inside of Hannah's mind through being able to listen (or read) to her tapes. I would completely recommend this on audiobook because it is narrated by both a male voice and female voice, meaning the tapes are in a female voice making the connection to Hannah having made the tapes much stronger. 

Hannah is very clear in tape one that there are thirteen reasons, or people, that ultimately shaped her mind into wanting to kill herself and that she would address each of them in the tapes. She is also clear that each person is to send the tapes to the next person on the list and if they did not a second set of tapes would be released exposing the secrets of all those mentioned. 

The book takes us through an entire night of Clay listening to the tapes and following what Hannah wants the listeners to do while giving us insight to his feelings and insight to Hannah's mind. 

I completely loved this book! I can see why so many people love it and call it a favorite. It's emotional and makes you think. I appreciate the look into the mind of a person who is severely depressed and that it makes you think. This book does a really great job of showing you not to judge someone by the rumors you hear and to pay attention to the warning signs, you never know what someone could be going through. 

The only downside I had to this book was listening to it at work, it was hard not getting emotional and I had a few people ask me what was wrong. Other than that I really loved it and cannot wait to meet Jay Asher next week! 

Overall I would recommend this to anyone looking for a good emotional read, just know what the subject matter is going into it and be in the right head space. 

   

The Girl from the Sea by Shalini Boland || BOOK REVIEW

Book: The Girl from the Sea

Author: Shalini Boland

Release Date: June 9, 2016

Published: Adrenalin Books

Genres: Mystery Thriller

Format: Audiobook

Narrator: Gemma Dawson

Length: 7 hr and 17 min

Audio Published: Tantor Audio

Pages: 306

Goodreads Description

Overview:

Waking up on the beach not knowing who she is or what happened to her, our main character begins her journey of trying to figure out what use to be her life. 

Mia is a 25 year old woman who has amnesia throughout the majority of this story. It takes a few chapters to learn her name and start learning a few details about who she is. It's her boyfriend that claims her and brings her home feeding her details about who she is and where they are at in their life. 

Very quickly Mia feels unease with her boyfriend and wants to him to leave her alone. After she contacts her mother and sister she starts feeling like everyone is lying to her when things aren't adding up. 

Through wondering around town and finding a friend she can confide in Mia slowly starts having flashbacks and feelings of who she use to be. This story is a gripping thriller of figuring out who you once were and if that person is who you want to be now. 

Characters:

Our main character, Mia, is sweet and innocent essentially experiencing things for the first time. She reaches out to her family and some friends she thinks she can trust all the while wanting to be alone to try and remember who she once was. For the most part Mia is an enjoyable character and I really found my self rooting for her throughout the story.

Her boyfriend, Piers, is a truly unlikable character. From the moment we meet him I didn't trust him and thought he was hiding things from Mia. He came to the hospital claiming to be her boyfriend then keeps letting himself into her home with his set of keys and forcing her into social situations that she is not ready for. I found myself getting uncomfortable and tense anytime he was in the scene. 

We really don't get to see a whole lot of Mia's mom and sister, which is a disappoint because I did enjoy the few scenes we got with them. 

The only other main character worth mentioning is Jack. Jack is a friend of Mia's from the rowing house and really the only person she is comfortable with after her accident. He helps her keep calm when anxiety arises and takes her out rowing to give her some sense of normalcy.

What I liked:

So much! I really enjoyed this psychological thriller. It kept me guessing and I only was able to figure things out moments before they were revealed. I enjoyed Mia as a main character, she wasn't miserable as some psychological thriller characters can be. The author does a good job of giving the reader just enough info to let you in on the secret but also keeps you guessing just as our main character is figuring out who she is. 

What I disliked:

The one thing I had trouble with is believing our main character is 25. Maybe because the narrator sounds older but also because it felt like her life was too well formed for a 25 year old, almost like everything seems too convenient and falls right into place for her.  Sure, it can happen but I kept imagining her being in her late 20s/early 30s, not 25. The ending also was a bit lack luster for me, but still enjoyable and unpredictable.

Conclusion:

Overall I really enjoyed this book! It's been awhile since I've read a decent psychological thriller. I loved the mystery of this and how the author gave mystery in the form of the main character having amnesia. I didn't figure out the end until right before it gets revealed and with books like these I try to figure out the mystery as early as possible. The final chapter was a little lacking for me but it doesn't really take away from the overall story. In the end I would recommend this to anyone looking for a quick mystery/thriller read!