Review: The Sea of Tranquility

Rating: ★★★★☆(4.5)

Author: Katja Millay

Genre: New Adult Fiction; Contemporary Romance

Publisher: Anitsocialite Press LLC

Publication Date:  September 5, 2012

Pages: 380

Format: E-book

Content Rating: PG-13

“I am pressed so hard against the earth by the weight of reality that some days I wonder how I am still able to lift my feet to walk.” ~ Katja Millay, The Sea of Tranquility

Overview

Full of rage and without a purpose, former pianist Nastya Kashnikov wants two things: to get through high school without anyone discovering her past and to make the boy who took everything from her pay.

All 17 year-old Josh Bennett wants is to build furniture and be left alone, and everyone allows it because it’s easier to pretend he doesn’t exist. When your name is synonymous with death, everyone tends to give you your space.

Everyone except Nastya, a hot mess of a girl who starts showing up and won’t go away until she’s insinuated herself into every aspect of his life. The more he gets to know her, the more of a mystery she becomes. As their relationship intensifies and the unanswered questions begin to pile up, he starts to wonder if he may ever learn the secrets she’s been hiding or if he even wants to.

The Sea of Tranquility is a slow-building, character-driven romance about a lonely boy, an emotionally fragile girl, and the miracle of second chances. (Goodreads.com)

Review

Katja Millay's debut novel, The Sea of Tranquility,  is a sad, lonely and absolutely beautiful work of fiction.

I always read up about the author before I pick up a book.  Being a writer myself, I guess I am just interested in their motivations and quirks.  Reading up on Millay, I discovered she was once in film school and after reading The Sea of Tranquility I can see it totally fits.  Her prose are so beautifully descriptive and and her characters are so fully fleshed out, it is almost like you are watching a movie in your mind's eye.

Millay, herself, describes her novel as "a slow-building, character-driven romance" and she is right on both accounts.  On first appearance, this novel builds slowly to the point of frustration at times but once you reach the end you realize that the build was actually gaining in intensity all the way to the very last word.

Both the hero (Josh) and the heroine (Nastya) are tragic, broken people.  Honestly, they really depressed me, but damn if I couldn't put their story down!  There were points in their story that I truly felt like I was drop kicked straight in my gut.....hard. There were also points where I wanted to strangle both hero and heroine for putting me through all the angst.  But the moments where these two connect, where they are drawn to each other and to the possibility of a reset of their young lives is worth every second of angst.

I don't do spoilers, but I will say this:  This whole novel is built around the last few sentence and they will take your breath away ( but only if you do the work and follow Nastya and Josh's journey from the first to the last word.) The reward is in finish.

Review: Arranged

Rating: ★★★★★

Author: Catherine McKenzie

Genre: Adult Fiction; Contemporary Romance; Chick-Lit

Publisher: (William Morrow) Harper Collins

Publication Date: January 8, 2011

Pages: 243

Format: E-Book, Trade Fiction Paperback

Content Rating: PG-13

“You just need to be honest with yourself about what kind of life you want.  And once you do that, you'll know what you want and how to get it." ~ Catherine McKenzie, Arranged

Overview

Anne Blythe has a great life: a good job, close friends, and a potential book deal for her first novel. When it comes to finding someone to share her life with, however, she just can't seem to get it right. When her latest relationship implodes, and her best friend announces she's engaged, Anne impulsively calls what she thinks is a dating service—only to discover that it's actually an exclusive, and pricey, arranged marriage service. Anne initially rejects the idea, but the more she learns about the service, the more she thinks: Why not? After all, arranged marriages are the norm for millions of women around the world; maybe it could work for her.

A few months later, Anne is travelling to a Mexican resort, where in one short weekend she will meet and marry Jack. And against all odds, it seems to be working out-until Anne learns that Jack, and the company that arranged their marriage, are not what they seem at all. (Harper Collins /Goodreads)

Review

I love it when I stumble on a book that I was not expecting and it then turns out to be exactly what I need.  Such was my introduction to the beautifully simple writing style of Catherine McKenzie through her second book Arranged.

I came across Arranged while searching through the 'Deals' section on my Nook. It was temporarily marked down to $1.99 (Although, the sale did not last long at all and it is now back to its standard $9.99.) I will confess it was the cover that caught my eye initially.  Then I read the overview and thought to myself, "hmm, this is different.  I need something different. My book rut is quickly becoming a book pothole. "  After reading over some reviews that explained how McKenzie wove in a correlation to the classic serial Anne of Green Gables, I was sold (my sister-in-law and my niece are HUGE Anne fans.)

What I didn't expect was how absorbed I would be after only the first few pages and even more that it would continue to keep me entertained all the way to the end. 

Arranged was first and foremost a strong character-driven self discovery novel.  It had a handful of life themes that really wrapped up Anne's journey in a heart-felt and realistic manner.  'Forgiveness', 'making your own way' and 'love requires hard work' are the most prominent lessons Anne navigates through her relationship with Jack and the trials of their arranged marriage. 

I really can't say enough good things about McKenzie's writing style.  It flows so easily.  The dialogue is crisp and the settings transport you seamlessly.  My mind did not have to work to understand the characters or the plot even though both were complex and three-dimensional.  It just clicked. A writer that can do that is one to add to your favorites list. What impresses me even more is that McKenzie is a  lawyer by day and writes in her spare time!  I'll be picking up McKenzie's first novel Spin next and will follow that up with her new novel Forgotten when it is released on October 16.

Review: Callum & Harper

Rating: ★★★★☆

Author: Fisher Amelie

Genre: Romance; Mature Young Adult; Suspense

Publisher: Fisher Amelie

Publication Date:  December 24, 2011

Pages: 242

Series: Sleepless #1
Format: E-Book, Self-Publish Paperback

Content Rating: PG-13

“One day, you and I are gonna wake up and be alright. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow but one day. One day. I promise you.” ~Fisher Amelie, Callum & Harper

Overview

Homeless and alone after ageing out of the foster system, orphans Harper Bailey and Callum Tate cross paths in a New York City social services office one summer afternoon and two lives once lived in parallel collide. In each other they finally find the family, friendship and deep abiding love that has eluded them both as a matter of circumstance. But things aren't always so simple and Harper and Callum learn that once you have gained everything you could ever want you are at risk of losing everything that matters most.

Book Trailer 

Review 

I am such a sucker for a book with a built-in soundtrack! It helps even more when the music enhances the story so perfectly. Please Don't Go by Barcelona and Where is my Mind by The Pixies will always remind me of these two misfit star-crossed lovers.

That said, this novel really threw me for a loop. I had to sit on this one for a while because I loved it but couldn't exactly pinpoint why.

Harper and Callum are just so perfect for each other and their story is breathtaking, frustrating, sweet and funny all at once. From the moment they meet they are drawn to each other but they dance around their feelings for each other for far longer than most heroes and heroines in a typical romance novel. Unfortunately, they are plagued with the fear of having the one thing that means everything to them (each other) taken away or rejected as they have both grown accustom to through their trials in the foster system. So instead they choose to settle for playing it safe and harboring their true feelings for a good majority of the novel. But, since Amelie has written this story in alternating points of view, you get to experience both characters fear, growth and yearning in a powerful way.

My only real qualm was the continuous loop of suspense. Don't get me wrong, I love a good suspense but I felt that Amelie went slightly over on the number of "incidents" that were threatening to Harper and Callum. The story line was strong enough without all the suspenseful climaxes. Once you reach the resolution, however, it was awesome and to borrow Callum's words "My God was it worth the wait."

The real beauty in this novel is Amelie's talent in painting a picture with her words and fleshing out fascinating three-dimensional characters. I felt like I was navigating the streets of New York and learning to survive right along with Harper and Callum. Amelie took two people who should by most accounts be incredibly jaded and created a beautiful love story full of innocence, vulnerability and hope.

-30- 

Review: Slammed

Rating: ★★★★★
Author: Colleen Hoover

Genre: Romance; Mature Young Adult

Publisher: Colleen Hoover

Publication Date:  January 1,2012

Pages: 314
Series: Slammed #1
Format: E-Book, Trade Fiction Paperback, Audio
Content Rating: PG-13










“I got schooled this year
by
a
boy.
A boy that I'm seriously, deeply, madly, incredibly, and undeniably in love with.
And he taught me the most important thing of all-
To put the emphasis
On life .”   ~ Colleen Hoover, Slammed

Overview

Falling in love can feel like poetry. Or it can feel like a slam to the heart.

Colleen Hoover’s romantic, emotion-packed debut novel unforgettably captures all the magic and confusion of first love, as two young people forge an unlikely bond before discovering that fate has other plans for them.

Following the unexpected death of her father, eighteen-year-old Layken becomes the rock for both her mother and younger brother. She appears resilient and tenacious, but inside, she's losing hope. Then she meets her new neighbor Will, a handsome twenty-one-year-old whose mere presence leaves her flustered and whose passion for poetry slams thrills her.

Not long after a heart-stopping first date during which each recognizes something profound and familiar in the other, they are slammed to the core when a shocking discovery brings their new relationship to a sudden halt. Daily interactions become impossibly painful as they struggle to find a balance between the feelings that pull them together and the forces that tear them apart. Only through the poetry they share are they able to speak the truth that is in their hearts and imagine a future where love is cause for celebration, not regret. (Goodreads.com)

Review

There is a reason this little indie gem has surpassed power house authors like Janet Evanovich, Nicolas Sparks and James Patterson on the New York Times Bestsellers for combined print and e-book fiction. A very good reason. It is quite simply that good and with a 4.44 out of 5 (with over 11,000 votes) on goodreads.com I am most definitely not the only one who has noticed.  

This book works on so many levels it is hard to stick it into one genre.  It is heart-wrenching, humorous, romantic and utterly moving.  As a mother it hit me right in the gut, as a lover of romantic fiction it got me straight in the heart and as a poetry fan it stirred my mind.  I just loved everything about it.

As the story begins, you are lulled into thinking that this novel will follow the same predictable mold of most young adult romance novels but as it unfolds you find that Slammed is really about so much more.  It is, at its core, about all the facets of life.  It is about all the beautiful moments, all the ugly moments and most importantly all the poignant moments that shape you.

Emotion is never lacking throughout the story, but it is the beautifully scripted relationships between all the characters that take Slammed to the next level. Lake and Will's relationship exhibits all the elements of the best angsty romance. It is forbidden, intense and captivating but it does not overshadow Lake's bonds with the other exceptional characters. Lake's relationships with her mother (Julia), her brother (Kel) and her best friend (Eddie) are just as key to the success of this story.

The other element that takes this book to another level is the moving poetry that tie all the pieces together. I couldn't even tell you which poem was my favorite because I loved them all. Hoover proves she is a talented poet as well as an exceptional author. 

Slammed is Hoover's debut novel and if she keeps climbing the bestsellers list at this pace she will be the next self-published author to be scooped up by mass market publishing.  

Point of Retreat, the sequel to Slammed, is out now and trailing not far behind Slammed on the New York Time Bestsellers list. 

UPDATE: Hoover announced on July 30, 2012 that she has signed with Artia (an imprint of Simon & Schuster.)  Look for Slammed and Point of Retreat on bookstore shelves everywhere this fall!