Most Likely to Succeed by Kate Davies

Most Likely to Succeed by Kate Davies
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Synopsis
Kelsey Moore is embarrassed to still be working at her family's flower shop when her 10 year high school reunion. The only thing that could draw her to the event is the hope of seeing her high school crush, Nathan Barrow.

Review
This novel felt short and light. None of the characters were really explored, this made the story feel like a light romp. Unfortunately, it also meant that I was never able to actually get into the story. The plot was very quick, and I had expected a bit more something.

My RecommendationIt was a fun, very light read. I give it 3/5 - Good, but not something I would repeat

Fields of Elysium by A.B.Whelan

Fields of Elysium by A.B.Whelan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Synopsis

While on a hike with her dog Pandora, Molly happens upon a strange glowing blue cloud in a cave. She is sucked through the portal and tossed into a different cave on the other side. While exploring she discovers a group of boys who let her know that she is no longer on Earth, but a planet called New Earth.

Review

The novel was an interesting concept, one I haven't seen presented quite this way before. The writing was a bit odd, but that is easily explained by the fact that the author is not a native English speaker. A.B. Whelan has an amazing imagination, she has certainly developed a very complex and rich world. Though the book seems to be written for a younger audience, somewhere around early teens, it does tackle a few fairly serious topics, like teen pregnancy and abuse, but in a bit of a haphazard way.

My Recommendation

While I did enjoy the novel, it did get a bit preachy at the end and wrapped up a bit too cleanly. I give it  4/5 - I really liked it

For more information about the ratings system, please click here.

What do you think?
Do you agree/disagree? Do you want to read it now? Or not? I love to hear(read) feedback!

***FTC Disclosure: This book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review, no other compensation was given, all opinions are my own***

Teach Me by R.A. Nelson

Teach Me by R.A. Nelson
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Synopsis

Nine is a six foot tall amazon girl in her senior year of high school, and she's hot for teacher. Attacking her attraction with laser focus, she is amazed and astounded when her feelings are reciprocated. When the teacher suddenly breaks it off, Nine loses it. Will she find her way out of the madness?

Review

Unlike Uses for Boys, Teach Me actually had some redeeming features at the end of the painful slog. While it was written very similarly to Uses for Boys, it did have a much stronger vocabulary and more personality than that novel. That said, I still wasn't a big fan. There were several points when I would tell my husband "I'm slogging through, but I just wish it would end." The story is not told linearly, and can be a bit confusing.
Nine was somewhat likable, though I lost any affection for her as the book went on. I just wanted to beat her over the head, or any of her "supportive" friends and family. It was bizarre that in her loving family, they just kind of "let her have her space" when their daughter was completely losing her mind. They even noted all of the signs of a major issue in their daughter, but then failed to do anything about it. I realize that this happens in real life, but it just seemed out of place in the novel.
The teacher, Mr. Mann was just plain creepy in my mind. I saw a few review were people thought that he sounded dreamy. Yeah, no. As a character, he was a bit flat for me. I thought that he should have been more developed if he was going to attract the attention of a seventeen year old girl that strongly. Though, I suppose that since the book is primarily about Nine's obsession, the lack of description could have been yet another example of how unwarranted her attention was.

My Recommendation

Since I didn't actually enjoy the book, I can't recommend that you read it. I think that if you want an exploration of the themes of this book, there are way better examples out there. (Even if I can't think of them off of the top of my head at the moment) I give it 2/5 - If it happens to be around, it's OK.

Uses for Boys by Erica Lorraine Scheidt

Uses for Boys by Erica Lorraine Scheidt
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

Synopsis

Anna is lonely, alone, and incredibly passive; she'll let boys do whatever they want to her. I would tell you more about the story, but there isn't really anything else to tell.

Review

You will not hear this from me often, but I hated this book. I wasn't offended, even thought the novel could be graphic at times, simply bored. I think that I understand what the author was trying to do with the story, and she did paint a fairly distinct picture or a very lonely and detached girl. Unfortunately, the story never really went anywhere. I kept waiting for some kind of redeeming feature, but it just never came. I never felt that Anna actually grew a backbone or became her own person, hell, I never felt like Anna became a person at all.
For a book that primarily focused on a girl that found her identity through boys, I was surprised that the male characters were even less developed than Anna. My biggest issue with this was the character Sam. I think that he was supposed to be a good guy and a redeeming character, but he just wasn't anything beyond a vehicle for Anna into his home.
While the writing was not terrible, the formatting of the chapters was irritating. Like the sparse, blank characters, the chapters were just odd; occasionally just fragments of a story or an isolated thought. Ugg.

My Recommendation

Honestly, the story made me thing of a mindless string of paper dolls humping each other. I wouldn't recommend this novel to anyone, especially the target audience of teenagers; I fear that they might possibly think that the behavior in the novel is OK and it is simply not. I give it a 1/5 - Not worth the effort.