In a Nutshell Reviews

In a Nutshell Reviews are my version of mini-reviews, because sometimes, you just want the highlights.

Relative Strangers
Paula Garner
Series: n/a
Age/Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary
Publisher: Candlewick
Rating:  4 out of 5 stars
Goodreads

Why is there a gap in Jules’s baby album? A wry and poignant coming-of-age novel about finding the truth in lies, salvaging hope in heartbreak, and making peace with missing pieces.

Eighteen-year-old Jules has always wished for a close-knit family. She never knew her father, and her ex-addict mother has always seemed more interested in artistic endeavors than in bonding with her only daughter. Jules’s life and future look as flat and unchanging as her small Illinois town. Then a simple quest to find a baby picture for the senior yearbook leads to an earth-shattering discovery: for most of the first two years of her life, Jules lived in foster care. Reeling from feelings of betrayal and with only the flimsiest of clues, Jules sets out to learn the truth about her past. What she finds is a wonderful family who loved her as their own and hoped to adopt her — including a now-adult foster brother who is overjoyed to see his sister again. But as her feelings for him spiral into a devastating, catastrophic crush — and the divide between Jules and her mother widens — Jules finds herself on the brink of losing everything.

I absolutely adored Phantom Limbs, and just had to read this book. I was so intrigued by this premise of Jules discovering this whole missing part of her life, and was quite moved by her journey.

• Pro:  I was glued to the this book for the first half. Fully rapt by Jules and her story, I could not put the book down. 
• Con: BUT the story took a few turns in the middle there that I was not too pleased about. 
• Pro: HOWEVER the ending was really strong. 
• Pro: This was a pretty thought provoking look at how complex relationships can be, between both family and friends. 
• Pro: Jules was a really interesting character. She loved old things and making ramen based meals in under 15 minutes (girl after my own heart). She didn't get the emotional support at home that she needed, but she was able to find a surrogate family through her friends. It contributed greatly to who she was and how she turned out the way she did. 
• Con: The alcohol and drug use would not have bothered me so much, if Jules did not directly question her predisposition to addiction given that she was the product of an addict. Garner's treatment of that issue was a little too cavalier for me, and all the drug use seemed wholly unnecessary for the story. 
• Pro: Garner didn't hide Jules' mom's flaws, however, she did help me understand why she was the way she was, and sort of let her redeem herself in her own way. I feel like she grew along with Jules over the course of the story, and I was really pleased with the ending Garner gave to each of them. 
• Pro: That cameo!!!! I think I squealed there towards the end when an old friend made an appearance. Well done, Ms. Garner. 
• Pro: At its heart, this is a story of family and what makes a family. I really enjoyed the exploration of all the different "familial" relationships Jules had, and how they all contributed to the woman she became. 

Overall: A beautiful and emotional story that examines intricacies of families and friendships and how they mold and shape us.

As She Fades
Abbi Glines
Series: n/a
Age/Genre: New Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Rating:  3.5 out of 5 stars
Goodreads

From the #1 New York Times- and USA Today-bestselling author of the Rosemary Beach and The Vincent Boys series, Abbi Glines delivers another smoldering, compulsively readable YA romance with As She Fades.

On the night of her high school graduation, Vale McKinley and her boyfriend Crawford are in a terrible car accident that leaves Crawford in a coma. They were supposed to spend the summer planning for college, for a bright future full of possibility. Together. Instead, Vale spends long days in the hospital, hoping Crawford will awaken.

Slate Allen, a college friend of Vale's brother, has been visiting his dying uncle at the same hospital. When he and Vale meet, she can't deny the flutter of an illicit attraction. She tries to ignore her feelings, but she's not immune to Slate's charm. Slowly, they form a cautious friendship.

Then, Crawford wakes up . . . with no memory of Vale or their relationship. Heartbroken, Vale opts to leave for college and move on with her life. Except now, she's in Slate's territory, and their story is about to take a very strange turn.

I have now read 28 books by Abbi Glines, and I keep coming back to her, time after time, because she fills a certain reading need of mine. Though this book was a lot lower drama than her previous books, it still had many of Glines' signature elements, which never fail to delight me.

• Pro: One of my favorite things in this book was the family focus. Vale was the youngest of five, with four protective older brothers and loving, present parents. I really enjoyed my time with the McKinley family, and was glad Glines shared so many of their family moments with us. The way the Mckinley family welcomed Slate in his time of need tugged on my heartstrings, and I was happy knowing he had a support system. 
• Pro: Slate was quite the interesting character. He had a reputation, but there was really so much more going on beneath that. Between his backstory and the lovely relationship he shared with his uncle, I really grew to like him a lot.
• Pro: Underneath it all, this was a story about self growth and the belief that we can grow and change. Vale had to face that she was not the same person she was before the accident, and after dealing with ill uncle, Slate realized that he wanted more from his relationships than he had in the past. 
• Pro: After a traumatic event, many people will reevaluate their lives, and Vale recognized that her perfect relationship wasn't so perfect. I thought her struggle was very genuine and I was both happy and sad for her, when she reached her resolution
• Pro: The twist was interesting. I kept thinking back to the "before" part of the book, to look for clues. There are actually a lot of things I would discuss with you right now if this was book club, but since we have not all read the book I will just say, it was a very intriguing approach, which I enjoyed. 
• Con: The ending seemed a little rushed. It was sweet, but everyone knows how greedy I am about endings.  
• Pro: Glines made me feel a bunch of things, and I even cried a little. That's always something I am looking for when I read a book. 
• Pro: I don't know if it was tongue-in-cheek or unintentional, but I think Glines acknowledged her love for odd names via a character in this book. 

Overall: A touching journey of growth and change with a sweet romance and a surprising twist.

Frat Girl
Kiley Roache
Series: n/a
Age/Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Goodreads

Sometimes the F-word can have more than one meaning….

For Cassandra Davis, the F-word is fraternity—specifically Delta Tau Chi, a house on probation and on the verge of being banned from campus. Accused of offensive, sexist behavior, they have one year to clean up their act. For the DTC brothers, the F-word is feminist—the type of person who writes articles in the school paper about why they should lose their home.

With one shot at a scholarship to attend the university of her dreams, Cassie pitches a research project: to pledge Delta Tau Chi and provide proof of their misogynistic behavior. They’re frat boys. She knows exactly what to expect once she gets there. Exposing them should be a piece of cake.

But the boys of Delta Tau Chi have their own agenda, and fellow pledge Jordan Louis is certainly more than the tank top wearing “bro” Cassie expected to find. With her heart and her future tangled in the web of her own making, Cassie is forced to realize that the F-word might not be as simple as she thought after all.

I have really been enjoying all these YA-goes-to college books lately, and I was really curious to see what Roache had planned for us with Frat Girl. I will say, I was nervous when I first started reading this book, but then, I was pleasantly surprised by Roache's approach to many of the issues addressed in the story.

• Pro: What really won my heart were all the wonderfully drawn characters in this book. When I was first introduced to some of them, I thought they were going to be one dimensional stereotypical characters, but they weren't. In fact, many of them often surprised me, and Roache also allowed them to experience some growth over the course of the story. 
• Pro: Speaking of characters that never stopped astounding me - Peter! He was definitely the best character in the book, and it was because he was so multifaceted and kept surprising me again and again. 
• Pro: This story was really political, and again, I was worried, because it seemed to only be showing one side of every issue, but as I read further, that did change. I appreciated how Roache tried to show the issue from multiple points of view, and even acknowledged that there are grey areas, that good and bad can co-exist. 
• Pro: This idea that grey areas exist and was acknowledged by Cassie was the real coming-of-age part of the story for me. That moving from seeing the world as purely black and white showed her growth. 
• Con: As a sorority woman, I felt the depiction of sorority women was entirely movie/TV stereotypical. Maybe it's because I went to school in the northeast and not California, but my chapter had diversity, and I remember my pledge class being read the riot act, because our GPAs needed to be higher. I also got to spend 3 1/2 years with some of the most intelligent women, who were also campus leaders, and are now featured and honored as leaders in their fields. #IAmASororityWoman. 
• Con: With that said, I wish there had been a look at greek organizations that did not ascribe to the Animal House mentality. Like with everything, there's a spectrum. 
• Pro: Here it comes - I really enjoyed the romance in this book. It was sweet and honest and I could not have asked for a better romantic interest for Cassie. 
• Pro: Roache did a great job with her treatment of the college setting in the book. Usually, we see mostly parties and classes are in the background, but she really brought us into that tricky balancing act that successful college students must master. 
• Pro: This could serve as a jumping off point for some great discussions or inspire someone to learn more about some of the issues regarding different feminist movements and sexism. Though a little heavy handed at times, there are many ideas presented that made me think. 

Overall:  A fun look at college life, which also tackled some relevant issues. 

** ARCs received in exchange for honest reviews.

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