In a Nutshell Reviews: YA Edition

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

Fame, Fate, and the First Kiss
Kasie West
Age/Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Publisher: HarperTeen
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Goodreads

Lacey Barnes has dreamt of being in a movie for as long as she can remember. However, while her dream did include working alongside the hottest actor in Hollywood, it didn’t involve having to finish up her senior year of high school at the same time she was getting her big break. Although that is nothing compared to Donavan, the straight-laced student her father hires to tutor her, who is a full-on nightmare.

As Lacey struggles to juggle her burgeoning career, some on-set sabotage, and an off-screen romance with the unlikeliest of leading men, she quickly learns that sometimes the best stories happen when you go off script.

Lacey was focused on her acting career and saw boys as a distraction. She was determined to convince her dad, that acting was important to her and her future, but first she had to sort out her feelings for Donavan, and uncover who was sabotaging her on the set.

• Pro: Lacey was so easy to love. She came across as likable and authentic. Her worries and fears were plausible, and I really admired her focus and determination, as she tried to juggle the movie, school work, her dad's interference, and her burgeoning feelings for Donavan.
• Pro/Con: One of the things I wished there was more of was Donavan. He was great, and I would have loved to get to know him even better. I know I kept wishing there were more scenes with him and Lacey together, because I really enjoyed watching them on page together. 
• Pro: West always includes family focus in her books, and the dynamics here were sort of interesting with respect to Lacey. I really felt Lacey's struggle with adjusting to life with her non-custodial parent, while missing her mom and siblings. I also got to meet Donavan's sister, who was cute as a button, and shared a very endearing bond with her big brother. 
• Pro: The romance was, as I expected, very sweet. I loved the way Lacey slowly came to realize her feelings for Donavan, and I was solidly aboard this ship. 
• Pro: It was fun being on the set and getting a look into the day to day life of "stars". I enjoyed seeing the friendships between Lacey and her co-stars develop, and the cameos from the Love, Life, and the List couple made me smile.  The mystery of who was sabotaging Lacey was not very necessary, but I thought it added another level of fun to the story. 
• Pro: This was a solid 4-star read, but the ending made me so happy, I bumped it up a half star. West did so many things right in that last chapter, and I can only smile and think fondly about it. 

Overall: Once again, West left me with a smile on my face and a light heart. It's always a delight to read a one of her books, and as always, the story was fun and cute with friends, family, and an adorable romance to round out my overall enjoyment.

Nick and June Were Here
Shalanda Stanley
Age/Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Publisher: Knopf
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Goodreads

Nick and June were best friends for years, until their relationship suddenly turned into something more. Now, June is coping with a new diagnosis of schizophrenia, a secret she asked Nick to keep for too long. Between managing her symptoms and her parents, June is just trying to keep it together. Nick is a reluctant car thief, supporting his aunt with the money and focusing on his art whenever he can.

But when June's condition sends her to the hospital and Nick's latest crime threatens to land him in prison, the two decide to run away. When the world is trying to tear them apart, can Nick and June find a way to stay together?

Warning: This was not a fluffy, simple, two-teens-in-love story. This was a story of a love that survived and flourished despite some really difficult circumstances, and about the tough choices one must make for those they love.

• Pro: My emotions were all over the place reading this book. Both Nick and June had serious issues to deal with. Nick was trying to escape a life of crime, and June was dealing with her recent diagnosis of schizophrenia. These were the really painful parts, but the parts, when Nick and June were able to just be NickAndJune were beautiful. 
• Pro: I personally thought June's hospital stay was well done. Her sessions with the doctor and the steps taken to diagnose her, rang true for me. In general, the mental health issues were handled thoughtfully and with care. 
• Pro: I guess the main focus was the love shared between Nick and June, but familial and non-romantic love was also explored, and it was done quite beautifully. 
• Pro: It's impressive, that this didn't turn into some over the top drama. If you look at all the pieces, it totally could have, but Stanley carefully crafted the story, and each element was used judiciously, resulting in something that was really meaningful and pleasing. 
• Pro: Every character was well drawn. It was easy to feel something for each and every one of them, and my heart especially ached for Nick, June, and June's parents. 
• Pro: At one point, I put up an update about how I felt this story couldn't end well, and I was sort of right. It wouldn't have been realistic if it did, but what Stanley gave me, was an ending that was real, but hopeful. 

Overall: An achingly beautiful love story between two people, who had so many obstacles in their way, but were determined to love each other in defiance of it all. 

Comics Will Break Your Heart
Faith Erin Hicks
Age/Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Rating:  4 out of 5 stars
Goodreads

Miriam's family should be rich. After all, her grandfather was the co-creator of smash-hit comics series The TomorrowMen. But he sold his rights to the series to his co-creator in the 1960s for practically nothing, and now that's what Miriam has: practically nothing. And practically nothing to look forward to either-how can she afford college when her family can barely keep a roof above their heads? As if she didn't have enough to worry about, Miriam's life gets much more complicated when a cute boy shows up in town . . . and turns out to be the grandson of the man who defrauded Miriam's grandfather, and heir to the TomorrowMen fortune.

In her endearing debut novel, cartoonist Faith Erin Hicks pens a sensitive and funny Romeo and Juliet tale about modern romance, geek royalty, and what it takes to heal the long-festering scars of the past (Spoiler Alert: love).

His family had made their fortune from the TomorrowMen, while her family watched from the sidelines. Can Mir and Weldon rise above their family history and forge a relationship?

• Pro: I was actually a big Weldon fan. He had quite a bit of baggage to unpack, and I was glad Nova Scotia was a hospitable place for him to do it. 
• Pro: The romance was very sweet. I liked how Mir's feelings for Weldon snuck up on her, while Weldon was sort of gooey from the start. 
• Pro: The Hendricks were such a fabulous family, and Mir's household may have been physically shabby, but it was filled with love and parents, who were genuine and supportive. 
• Pro: Hicks has an obvious love for comics, and some definite feelings about the comic and superhero industry. There is some intriguing commentary in the book that had me nodding my head. I also really liked getting a peek at what goes into writing and illustrating a comic. We got to hear from an artist in the book, as well as tagging along as Mir and her friend attempted to write a comic script. 
• Con: Don't get me wrong, I really thought the ending was nice and sweet and I was rather happy with the resolutions, but it felt a little rushed to me.  
• Pro: This wasn't just a romance. Both Weldon and Mir were struggling with some issues relating to letting go and moving on, which were definitely themes for several characters in this book. Mir and Weldon grew over the course of the book, and it was clear in the way their approach to this issues changed. 

Overall:  An adorable romance with a side of coming-of-age and geekery, which was fun and light and smile inducing. 

** ARCs received in exchange for honest reviews.

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