We Set the Dark on Fire by Tehlor Kay Mejia

We Set the Dark on Fire by Tehlor Kay Mejia
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Freaking amazing. A totally unique and fascinating world, in which there still manages to be interesting political commentary that is currently highly relevant to our political climate.

I have started the New Year right by reading several YA novels with resistance themes this weekend (totally by accident) which is all sitting really well with me. If this is an end result of our currently difficult political climate—-that writers everywhere are using their art to tell beautiful stories that send strong messages to people about humanity and power dynamics, then at least one good thing has come out of all the mess. Because this is glorious. I can’t wait to get my hands on book 2, and I think more people need to get their hands on this book. I’m hoping it gives teens a lot to think about, in regards to what they believe in and care about, so that when they reach the age of majority and can vote, they’ll do better than my generation has been able to do. And be kinder to all people than my generation has been.

Clearly, I absolutely adored this, but I am now so tense and stressed out after reading it that I think I’m going to have to have my shoulders surgically removed from my ears.

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Georgia Peaches and Other Forbidden Fruit by Jaye Robin Brown

Georgia Peaches and Other Forbidden Fruit by Jaye Robin Brown
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I confess that, at first, I was not sure if I was going to like anyone in this story, as circumstances are rather rough at the beginning. However, I quickly came around on almost everyone, and I really enjoyed this one. There's a lot of change and growth, which all feels very realistic and honest. The romance elements are so sweet and hopeful.

The writing and storytelling are both fantastic, and the pacing seems to be spot on. Overall, this is a really solid YA Contemporary romance with a good amount of diversity that doesn't come only from the LGBT characters.

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The Kill Club by Wendy Heard

The Kill Club by Wendy Heard
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I should start this off by saying about 32.7% of me wants to actually be in the kill club, 56.3% of me is absolutely horrified by it, and 11% of me seriously wonders if someone is going to go out and try to start their own kill club after reading this. I mean, it’s practically a user’s guide for how to kill and/or fail to kill bad humans, which makes it a total breeding ground for future serial killers to converge around. Good lord, I hope that doesn’t happen, but this book does provide some sort of deranged education that could be useful to the wrong crowd.

If you’re the wrong crowd, then move along, there is nothing to see here. Also, I am not available for killing, as my calendar is quite full.

Anyway, let’s get back to the point, which is that this book is thrilling right up until the very last page. It’s dark, intense, and seriously emotional (or maybe that was just me, as I think I emotionally flailed through the whole book). Maybe we should just ignore the fact that I dropped the book quickly around page 311 and glared at it intensely for 2 days, while chewing all my fingernails to stubs, before I was able to pick it back up again and finish reading.

I am convinced that I need to be best friends with Jazz, the main character, even though she’s not really the warm, snuggly bestie type of person. In fact, I think she’d probably hate me if we met in real life. Sigh. I have to up my street cred. My Midwestern upbringing seems to be harmful to forming real and lasting literary friendships with fictional characters.

Back to the point, I effing love this book. I mean, this is how you follow up a stellar debut—with a second offering that left me guessing and stressing the whole way through. There were so many twists and turns that I just never saw coming. My adrenaline level has been so high that I haven’t slept well since I picked this book up (3 days ago). And now, it ended, and I’m still intensely anxious (thanks a lot, Wendy Heard).

It’s well-written, brilliantly plotted, and the character development is top notch. I enjoyed so many of the characters, as even the really awful people are absolutely fascinating. This book puts the characters in situations where they have to make a lot of hard decisions, and I think that’s part of why this is so phenomenal. Nobody gets an easy ride, and not knowing what will happen next or how someone will react to a situation is half the charm of the story (assuming I can call it charm, considering the story is full of brutal murder scenarios---I’m not sure what the appropriate review etiquette is for this sort of situation).

I suspect an audiobook version of this would be phenomenal (and/or emotionally debilitating), which means I have to go now, as I want to hop on over to Audible and see if I can preorder a copy.


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The Truth As He Knows It by A.M. Arthur

The Truth As He Knows It by A.M. Arthur
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The writing on this story is a bit rough around the edges, so much so that I frequently mixed the two men up in the beginning. However, I continued onward, as I enjoyed the two overall and wanted to see how it panned out.

The story and writing style weren't enough to convince me to read onward in the series. However, there are some nice, emotional moments in this book that made it worth seeing it through to the end. This has a glimmer. I just wanted it to develop into a full out shine, but it doesn't quite get there.

Honestly, I just read the book last week, and I couldn't remember what it was even about without looking it back up. Even then, I still don't remember how it ends. So it's not a story that's going to really stick with you or give you anything to think about, but it was a decent, mindless sort of read for when you want to try something new but don't have any huge expectations.

GearShark Series by Cambria Hebert

#Junkie by Cambria Hebert
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I adore Trent and Drew, and this story has lots of heart. The only thing I don't like is the chopped off cliff-hanger ending that provides no resolution. It makes this feel like an incomplete story, which basically, it is. I guess there's a second thing that I don't like, and that's some of the stereotypes in this story. I could do without those, as well. Otherwise, it's a good read.

The narration is by Luke Itzvic and Guy Locke, both who do a great job.

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#Rev by Cambria Hebert
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is the second half of Drew and Trent's story, and while I like it fine, I wish these first 2 books had been combined to create one better story. I don't think it all needed to be drug out for so long, especially considering that some things still weren't addressed very well. I think if this had been edited down to the heart of their story, then it could have easily been one book, which would have made it stronger overall.

Despite that, I still read and mostly enjoyed this story. There are some things I wish would have been handled better, but Drew and Trent are both so lovable that it pushed me to look past gaps in the storytelling. It's all pretty predictable, in terms of how things occur, so for needing 2 books to tell their story, I guess I just wished for something more.

This is a 3.5 for me, so I've rounded up to 4 stars.

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#Swag by Cambria Hebert
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

There are a lot of elements that I really loved with this story, including two outcasts coming together. It gave us an opportunity to see the softer sides of both. I also thought it was interesting that this addressed a lot of gender and sexism issues, though I do wish the female lead would have handled a few things differently along the way. Despite that, I really enjoyed this story. Things get heated quickly, and there's plenty of clashing.

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#Blur by Cambria Hebert
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

My favorite in the series so far. Lots of depth and emotional range, with two fantastic main characters.

Arctic Heat by Annabeth Albert

Arctic Heat by Annabeth Albert
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was another sweet read in a series that I have overall enjoyed. Honestly, I would like even more of the Alaska setting than what it gives me, but it's an enjoyable story.

I got a little frustrated by Quill, which probably wasn't fair, but he was getting in the way of what I wanted from this story.

The narrator, Iggy Toma, does a great job and is easy to listen to. He has sort of a gruff, rugged feel with his voice that works for this story, but it doesn't at all get in the way of clarity for the listener.

What If It's Us by Becky Albertalli

What If It's Us by Becky Albertalli
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

On the scale of Meh to Adorable, this is a puppy, riding a glitter unicorn into the sunset, in order to rescue a tie-dyed kitten from the licorice limb of a tree made from lollipops and daydreams, embedded deep into an earth of caramel walnut fudge, and watered with the drool of a million babies, who just discovered their toes for the first time.

If you can't handle that, then you don't deserve it.

Narration is by Noah Galvin and Froy Gutierrez, which is an excellent pairing.