ARC Review: Highly Illogical Behavior

TITLE: Highly Illogical Behavior
AUTHOR: John Corey Whaley
PUBLISHER: Dial Books
PUBLICATION DATE: 5/10/2016
FORMAT: ARC
PAGES: 256
SOURCE: Amazon Vine/Publisher
MY RATING: 🦄🦄🦄🦄

BACK COVER SUMMARY: Sixteen-year-old Solomon hasn't left the house in three years. Ambitious Lisa desperately wants to go to the second-best psychiatry program for college (she's realistic).

Lisa figures if she can treat Sol's condition and publish her findings he could be her ticket to a scholarship. So Lisa ingratiates herself with Sol and his parents, introduces him to her boyfriend, Clark, and tells him her secrets. Soon, Solomon begins to expand his universe with the help of his new friends. But when their facades come crashing down, their friendships threaten to collapse, as well.

OVERALL IMPRESSION: I had my eye on this book ever since I first heard about it. Before this book I had never read anything by John Corey Whaley before, but I was anticipating good things because I've heard rave reviews about his work. I was not disappointed. I was hooked from page one of this book. The way the story line came to be was a little weird for me, but the way that it was written and they way the characters interacted with each other made this such an enjoyable read.

CHARACTERS: All of the characters in this book are great, but my favorite has to be Solomon's grandmother. She was hilarious and so much fun and I loved the relationship that Solomon had with her.

I also like Solomon. Even though his condition is something that I don't hear about often, I felt like he was such a real character and a real person.

COVER: The cover is great and I love it even more now after having read the story and seeing how it ties in.

**I received an ARC of this book from Amazon Vine/The Publisher for my honest review. All opinions are my own and have not been influenced in any way.**

Charisma Review

TITLE: Charisma
AUTHOR: Jeanne Ryan
PUBLISHER: Dial Books
PUBLICATION DATE: 3/3/2015
FORMAT: Hardcover
PAGES: 384
SOURCE: Won from Crystal @ Winter Haven Books
MY RATING: 

INSIDE COVER SUMMARY: Aislyn is the kind of shy that makes her choke up in class and avoid parties. And it means talking to her crush, Jack, is a total non-starter. So when she's offered a dose of Charisma, an underground gene therapy drug guaranteed to make her shine, she jumps at the chance for an internal makeover. The effects are instant. She's charming, vivacious, and popular. But strangely, so are some other kids she knows. The media goes into a frenzy when the therapy turns contagious, and then deadly, and the doctor who gave it to them disappears. Aislyn must choose between reversing the treatment and losing her new personality, or risking her life for a shot at charisma.

OVERALL IMPRESSION: This was a fun read. First of all, I could totally relate to Aislyn's social phobia. I don't have it quite as bad as her, and lately I'm starting to come out of my shell as I get older and realize that we're all just people, but I can definitely relate to her. There were some things that I predicted about the story, but that didn't really take away from my experience reading. I felt that the ending was pretty well done. There was a good amount of closure while still leaving some things open.

CHARACTERS: I wish there was more information about the side characters. I feel like I almost got to know them, but not enough to feel connected to any of them. Aislyn was a good main characters. I could feel what she was feeling. I thought that she made some unwise decisions, but I also felt like she acted in a way that many teens would if faced with her situation.

COVER: I love the cover, but I'm not entirely sure how it ties in with the story. It would make more sense if it were monkeys or something, but the color scheme is cute.

 

Between The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea Review

Goodreads

TITLE: Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea

AUTHOR: April Geneieve Tucholke

PUBLISHER: Dial Books

PUBLICATION DATE: 8/15/2013

PAGES: 360

MY RATING:

INSIDE COVER SUMMARY: River rents the guesthouse behind Violet's crumbling estate, and as eerie, grim things start to happen, Violet begins to wonder about the boy living in her backyard. Is River just a crooked-smiling liar with pretty eyes and a mysterious past? Or could he be something more? Violet's grandmother always warned her about the Devil, but she never said he could be a dark-haired boy who takes naps in the sun, who likes coffee, who kisses you in a cemetery...who makes you want to kiss back. Violet's already so knee-deep in love, she can't see straight. And that's how River likes it.

OVERALL IMPRESSION: I was a little confused while reading this. While I was reading the story, I understood what was going on, but I wasn't sure where the plot was going. I guess the end of the book kind of cleared this up a little, but I feel like there could have been a lot more of a plot. The book got super intense near the end and left it in a great place for a sequel. 

I loved the writing and the setting. Tucholke painted some wonderful images in my head while I was reading.

I would not suggest this book for people who get frightened easily, because this is pretty creepy and twisted in some parts.

CHARACTERS: Violet was an okay character. Nothing spectacular, but she wasn't awful either. Violet's neighbor Sunshine felt a little pointless to the story. I didn't really care about her, even when things were happening to her. And River was just creepy throughout the whole book.

COVER: Gorgeous! It definitely sets the feel for the creepiness of the book. The font on the cover is awesome as well.

**I received a finished copy of this book from Amazon Vine for my honest review.