The Duff Review

Goodreads

TITLE: The Duff

AUTHOR: Kody Keplinger

PUBLISHER: Poppy

PUBLICATION DATE: 9/7/2010

FORMAT: ebook

PAGES: 270

SOURCE: Bought

MY RATING:

SUMMARY (FROM GOODREADS): Seventeen-year-old Bianca Piper is cynical and loyal, and she doesn't think she's the prettiest of her friends by a long shot. She's also way too smart to fall for the charms of the man-slut and slimy school hottie Wesley Rush. In fact, Bianca hates him. And when he nicknames her "the Duff," she throws her Coke in his face.

But things aren't so great at home right now, and Bianca is desperate for a distraction. She ends up kissing Wesley. Worse, she likes it. Eager for escape, Bianca throws herself into a closeted enemies-with-benefits relationship with him.

Until it all goes horribly awry. It turns out Wesley isn't such a bad listener, and his life is pretty screwed up, too. Suddenly Bianca realizes with absolute horror that she's falling for the guy she thought she hated more than anyone.

OVERALL IMPRESSION: I kept seeing the previews for the Duff movie on tv, so I wanted to read the book before watching the movie. The book is completely different than what I thought it would be. The movie previews make it seem like a light and fluffy comedy kind of movie (I haven't seen the movie yet, so I don't know if that's actually how they made it or not), but the book is actually quite a bit deeper than that. The book deals with some intense issues (body image, divorce, sex). The main theme of this book is body image and how we see ourselves and I feel like that theme was really hit head on in this book.

CHARACTERS: I would have liked a little more character development. I felt like the characters were on the right track, but I wanted a little it more about them. That being said, I really liked Bianca's best friends, Casey and Jessica. They were both really great, genuine friends to Bianca.

COVER: I don't really like the cover. I'm not really sure who the girl on the cover is supposed to be.

Afterworlds Review

Goodreads

TITLE: Afterworlds

AUTHOR: Scott Westerfeld

PUBLISHER: Simon Pulse

PUBLICATION DATE: 9/23/2014

FORMAT: Hardcover

PAGES: 499

SOURCE: Bought

MY RATING:

SUMMARY (FROM GOODREADS): Darcy Patel has put college and everything else on hold to publish her teen novel, Afterworlds. Arriving in New York with no apartment or friends she wonders whether she's made the right decision until she falls in with a crowd of other seasoned and fledgling writers who take her under their wings...

Told in alternating chapters is Darcy's novel, a suspenseful thriller about Lizzie, a teen to slips into the 'Afterworld' to survive a terrorist attack. But the Afterworld is a place between the living and the dead and as Lizzie drifts between our world and that of the Afterworld, she discovers that many unsolved - and terrifying - stories need to be reconciled. And when a new threat resurfaces, Lizzie learns her special gifts may not be enough to protect those she loves and cares about most.

OVERALL IMPRESSION: Basically, this book is about a girl named Darcy who is writing a novel. We get to see what is happening with her life and her writing career. Every other chapter lets us read a chapter of the book that Darcy is writing.

I've never read any other books like this. You're basically reading two books at the same time. I really enjoyed the story that Darcy was writing. It was really exciting and gripping. But at the same time, I was really interested in Darcy's journey. I liked getting a glimpse into a writer's side of life. When I got into each part, I didn't want to leave it to go back to the other, but I'd soon be sucked into that part and not want to leave.

I loved all of the BEA references. After hearing so much about BEA from fellow book bloggers, so it was neat to see it from the perspective of an author.

I also really enjoyed the ending of both the novel and Darcy's book. 

CHARACTERS: Darcy was a great main character. Yes, she is an author, but she's also just a teenager herself and she acts like a teenager. She does make some unwise decisions, but nothing that she can't come back from and I feel like her decisions are those that a typical teenager would make.

COVER: The cover is pretty neat. I feel like they could have done more to tie it into the story, but I do like it.

One Can Only Quote

Book Spine Poetry

These are pretty ridiculous, but here's the best I could come up with.

I wish the brokenhearted

bliss

The third twin

going over

dark places

Miles to go

if you find me exposed

The Questionnaire

What's your name?

Stacey

Where in the world are you blogging from?

Just East of Atlanta, Georgia

How did you get into blogging in the first place?

I saw other people writing blogs and making Youtube videos about books and I was really interested in watching and reading them. Then I decided I wanted a place where I could put my book reviews and thoughts to make a record of what I read.

How did you come up with your blog name?

Squiggles is the name I use for everything. If I have to make a screen name of any kind is always has the word Squiggles in it. It started back when I was in high school and is just my go to.

What genre do you read and review the most on your blog?

I kind of just read whatever I feel in the mood for, but most of the things I pick up are either young adult dystopian and contemporary novels.

What other types of posts do you do on your blog, apart from reviews?

Reviews are the main focus of my blog. Occasionally I will post a book haul or a book tour and very rarely I'll post something crafty that I've made (scrapbook layouts or greeting cards).

Best blogging experience so far?

Being able to request advance readers copies from Netgalley.

Favorite thing about the blogging community?

The support of everyone. We're all in the same boat and we all know how much work it takes to keep a blog running. I've seen a lot of bloggers banding together and supporting each other.

Name the 5 books you're most excited for this 2015!

1. Red Queen - I've already read this one and it was absolutely amazing!

2. A Court of Thorns and Roses

3. The Darkest Part of the Forest

4. My Heart and Other Black Holes

5. Shutter

What's an underrated book or series that you think everyone should read?

Apart from reading, what are your other hobbies or interests?

Scrapbooking, card making, jewelry making. I really like swapping handmade items in the mail (http://swapbot.com). I also have 3 cats and love animals!

Apart from book shopping, what else do you like shopping for?

Crafting supplies, clothes, Japanese snacks.

At a party, the DJ suddenly changes the song -- and it's your song. What song would be playing?

Probably Shake It Off by Taylor Swift. I'm kind of obsessed with that song and album right now.

Pick out either a book you want turned into a film/TV show, or a film/TV show you want turned into a book.

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard. I just finished reading it and it was so amazing. It reads like you're watching a movie. It would be so great!

Red Queen Review

Goodreads

TITLE: Red Queen

AUTHOR: Victoria Aveyard

PUBLISHER: HarperTeen

PUBLICATION DATE: 2/10/2015

FORMAT: Hardcover 

PAGES: 383

SOURCE: Bought

MY RATING:

INSIDE COVER SUMMARY: Mare Barrow's world is divided by blood--those with red and those with silver. Mare and her family are lowly reds, destined to serve the Silver elite whose supernatural abilities make them nearly gods. Mare steals what she can to help her family survive, but when her best friend is conscripted into the army she gambles everything to win his freedom. A twist of fate leads her to the royal palace itself, where, in front of the king and all his nobles, she discovers a power of her own--an ability she didn't know she had. Except her blood is Red.

To hide this impossibility, the king forces her into the role of a lost Silver princess and betroths her to one of his own sons. As Mare is drawn further into the Silver world, she risks her new position to aid the Scarlet Guard--the leaders of a Red rebellion. Her actions put into motion a deadly and violent dance, pitting prince against prince--and Mare against her her own heart.

OVERALL IMPRESSION: This book was just phenomenal. After reading it, I felt like my insides were being torn out, but in a good way! There were so many twists and turns. There were a few things that I saw coming, but I was still caught off guard by so many things. While reading the book, it felt like I was watching a movie instead of just reading and I can definitely see this being made into a movie and I really hope that happens. There's so much action and intense moments. The ending was perfect. It sets everything up for the next book and I cannot wait to get my hands on it. 

I would say that this book is easily up there on my list of favorite books, and if the rest of the books in the trilogy continue on the same path as Red Blood did, it will probably be my favorite series, second only to Harry Potter.

CHARACTERS: All of the characters in this book were great. There were great characters on the good side and great villains on the bad side. I really liked the main character, Mare. She is very independent and strong. She is a refreshing lead character in that she has a good head on her shoulders and she stands for what she believes in. I really want to learn more about Farley and I'm hoping that we will get a lot more of her in the next book in the series.

COVER: This is one of the best covers I have ever seen. I'm so glad that this amazing book was given such an amazing cover to tie the whole package together. It's just beautiful.

I Remember You Review

Goodreads

TITLE: I Remember You

AUTHOR: Cathleen Davitt Bell

PUBLISHER: Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers

PUBLICATION DATE: 2/10/2015

FORMAT: ARC

PAGES: 320

SOURCE: Amazon Vine

MY RATING:

BACK COVER SUMMARY: Seventeen-year-old Lucas is a star hockey player who's headed for the marines as soon as high school is over. Then there's Juliet, straight-A student and rigorous debater, whose college trajectory has been carefully planned for year. They couldn't be more different. But from the moment Lucas sees Juliet, he swears he remembers their first kiss. Their first dance. Their first fight. In fact, Lucas knows everything that's going to happen between them--not because he can predict the future, but because he claims to have already lived it.

Juliet doesn't know whether to be afraid for herself--or for Lucas. Because as Lucas's memories occur more frequently, they also grow more ominous. All Juliet wants is for Lucas to be safe with her in the present. But how do you hold on to someone you love now when they've begun slipping away from you in the future?

OVERALL IMPRESSION: From the moment I picked up this book and started reading, I was intrigued and had a hard time putting it down. I was completely sucked into the story and wanted to know what was going to happen next. I couldn't read it fast enough. As I started to actually understand what was I happening, I feel like it slowed down slightly, but only for a very small portion of the book. I was wondering what was going to happen at the end, and I was pleased with the way it turned out.

CHARACTERS: I liked both Juliet and Lucas. I felt they were good together and had great chemistry.

I did not like Juliet's best friend, Rosemary. I felt like she was acting the way that she thought she was supposed to act in order to be popular, like she was putting on a show.

COVER: This cover is one of my favorites of all time. It is gorgeous! I love the color scheme and the title font is perfect.

**I received an ARC of this book from Amazon Vine for my honest review.

Playlist For The Dead Review

Goodreads

TITLE: Playlist For The Dead

AUTHOR: Michelle Falkoff

PUBLISHER: Harper Teen

PUBLICATION DATE: 1/27/2015

FORMAT: ARC

PAGES: 288

SOURCE: Amazon Vine

MY RATING:

SUMMARY (From Goodreads): Here's what Sam knows: There was a party. There was a fight. The next morning, his best friend, Hayden, was dead. And all he left Sam was a playlist of songs, and a suicide note: For Sam--listen and you'll understand.

As he listens to song after song, Sam tries to face up to what happened the night Hayden killed himself. But it's only by taking out his earbuds and opening his eyes to the people around him that he will finally be able to piece together his best friend's story. And maybe have a chance to change his own.

Part mystery, part love story, and part coming-of-age tale in the vein of Stephen Chbosky's The Perks of Being a Wallflower and Tim Tharp's The Spectacular Now, Playlist for the Dead is an honest and gut-wrenching first novel about loss, rage, what it feels like to outgrow a friendship that's always defined you--and the struggle to redefine yourself. But above all, it's about finding hope when hope seems like the hardest thing to find.

OVERALL IMPRESSION: I had pretty high hopes for this book, but I was slightly let down. It didn't hold my attention as much as I wanted it to. I wanted to know what was going on and what was going to happen, but the book was so slow moving that I don't know if reading it was worth finding out what actually did happen. 

I think the ending was done nicely. For a book with this tough subject matter, I feel the book ended in the best way possible.

CHARACTERS: I liked Sam, the main character. I felt bad for him having to deal with the struggles of losing his only friend and having to come to terms with moving on with his life and putting himself out there.

COVER: The cover is amazing. I love the color and the silhouettes. 

**I received an ARC of this book from Amazon Vine for my honest review.**