The Waiting Sky by Lara Zielin

Release Date: August 2013
Source: Purchased

From Goodreads: One summer chasing tornadoes could finally change Jane's life for the better

Seventeen-year-old Jane McAllister can't quite admit her mother's alcoholism is spiraling dangerously out of control until she drives drunk, nearly killing them and Jane's best friend.

Jane has only one place to turn: her older brother Ethan, who left the problems at home years ago for college. A summer with him and his tornado-chasing buddies may just provide the time and space Jane needs to figure out her life and whether it still includes her mother. But she struggles with her anger at Ethan for leaving home and feels guilty--is she also abandoning her mom just when she needs Jane most? The carefree trip turned journey of self-discovery quickly becomes more than Jane bargained for, especially when the devilishly handsome Max steps into the picture.

I will admit it was the whole chasing tornado aspect of the story (and that super cool cover!) that made me buy this and I am so glad I did. I was really surprised by this book – it was much more than I was expecting it to be.

I loved the way the author dealt with the mother’s alcoholism – and Jane’s need to be there for her mother. I liked that her mother was shown to have a problem – but not portrayed as the bad guy – just someone who needs to recognize for themselves that they need help. I also liked that Jane obviously loves her mother – but that guilt is also part of what is making her stay. That ‘what if’ – what if something bad happened to her mother that she could have prevented? I really like that aspect of the story and the way her brother helps her to understand it’s not her responsibility to fix her mother.

I also liked the romance part of the story (of course!) and the tornado chasing was cool. I’ll definitely be reading more of Lara Zielin's work.

Character Profile (Oksa Pollock Blog Tour)

As part of the blog tour for the release of the second Oksa Pollock novel, The Forest of Lost Souls,  I have a character profile for the main character...

Name: Oksa Pollock

Age: 13 years old (at the beginning of the series), 17 years old at the end

Favourite film: The Dark Knight

Favourite dish: her grandmother’s pirojkis (small meatpies – it’s a Russian recipe), spiced tea and raspberries. Note: she hates leeks.

Favourite TV series: Heroes, Being Human, The Misfits (only stories where people have to hide who they are...)

Favourite subject at school: History

Favourite place in Paris: Montmartre, Sacré-Cœur

Favourite places in London since she moved: St James’s Park and Leicester Square

If she could have another magical power, what would it be? The ultimate one: bring dead people back to life.

If she was on a desert island with only one thing, what would it be? She’s very practical, so she would certainly choose something useful: a knife or a warm piece of clothing…

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Like to hear more about the books?  Check out the summary below:

From Amazon: A New Heroine. An Old Evil. An Unforgettable Adventure.

A thrilling new supernatural adventure series. Fuses the excitement, action and extraordinary worlds of Harry Potter, I Am Number Four and Buffy the Vampire Slayer with an inspirational new teen heroine.

Oksa Pollock is a normal thirteen-year-old girl, starting a new life in London. New lives, new friends, a new school and new adventures. But bizarre things start happening around Oksa she finds she can produce fire from her hands, move objects with her mind, and even fly.

Finally the truth emerges... her family fled Edefia, their magical, hidden homeland years ago. And more than that: Oksa is their queen... Oksa will be thrown into a wilder adventure than she could ever have imagined. She must triumph over her enemies. The whole of Edefia is counting on her.

Both are published today - The Last Hope in paperback and The Forest of Lost Souls in hardback.

Don't forget to check out the rest of the blog tour!  Details are below:

My Life Undecided by Jessica Brody

Release Date: June 2011
Source: Purchased

From Goodreads: PLEASE READ THIS! MY LIFE DEPENDS ON IT!

Okay, maybe that was a bit melodramatic, but I’m sorry, I’m feeling a bit melodramatic at the moment.

Here’s the deal. My name is Brooklyn Pierce, I’m fifteen years old, and I am decisionally challenged. Seriously, I can’t remember the last good decision I made. I can remember plenty of crappy ones though. Including that party I threw when my parents were out of town that accidentally burned down a model home. Yeah, not my finest moment, for sure.

But see, that’s why I started a blog. To enlist readers to make my decisions for me. That’s right. I gave up. Threw in the towel. I let someone else decide which book I read for English. And whether or not I accepted an invitation to join the debate team from that cute-in-a-dorky-sort-of-way guy who gave me the Heimlich maneuver in the cafeteria. (Note to self: chew the melon before swallowing it.) I even let them decide who I dated!

Well, it turns out there are some things in life you simply can’t choose or have chosen for you—like who you fall in love with. And now everything’s more screwed up than ever.

But don’t take my word for it. Read the book and decide for yourself. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll scream in frustration. Or maybe that’s just me. After all, it’s my life.

As with the Karma Club and 52 Reasons to Hate my Father I loved this. I really liked the idea behind the story - that she wanted to use the blog as a way of making descision – since her own were so bad!

Brooklyn is one of those characters you just know is going to get into trouble – lets just say trouble has pretty much followed her all her life! - so I was very intrigued to see how she would cope with the blog and them making choices for her. I wasn’t convinced she would do what they said!

As with previous books by Jessica Brody this is such good fun. It’s funny, sweet and again I loved the romance element of the book. I can’t wait to read more of her books.

I want to read that...

What I Thought Was True by Huntley Fitzpatrick

From Goodreads: From the author of My Life Next Door comes a swoony summertime romance full of expectation and regret, humor and hard questions.

Gwen Castle's Biggest Mistake Ever, Cassidy Somers, is slumming it as a yard boy on her Nantucket-esque island this summer. He's a rich kid from across the bridge in Stony Bay, and she hails from a family of fishermen and housecleaners who keep the island's summer people happy. Gwen worries a life of cleaning houses will be her fate too, but just when it looks like she'll never escape her past—or the island—Gwen's dad gives her some shocking advice. Sparks fly and secret histories unspool as Gwen spends a gorgeous, restless summer struggling to resolve what she thought was true—about the place she lives, the people she loves, and even herself—with what really is.

A magnetic, push-me-pull-me romance with depth, this is for fans of Sarah Dessen, Jenny Han, and Deb Caletti.


I absolutely LOVED My Life Next Door and am SERIOUSLY looking forward to reading this book!  April can't come soon enough!

Just Listen by Sarah Dessen

Release Date: 2006
Source: Purchased

From Goodreads: To find the truth, you've got to be willing to hear it.

When she's modeling, Annabel is the picture of perfection.

But her real life is far from perfect.

Fortunately, she's got Owen. He's intense, music-obsessed, and dedicated to always telling the truth.

And most of all, he's determined to make Annabel happy...

How on earth have I managed to this far without reading a Sarah Dessen book? Yes I have no idea either! Because this was absolutely amazing – I loved everything about it.

There is so much going on in this story. What happened to Annabel and how she is dealing (or not dealing) with that. Her home life and her sister’s anorexia. Having to deal with no longer having friends at school. It was really engaging – finding out what had happened to Annabel to get her to this point in her life and then as the story progresses seeing her sister fight her illness and Annabel face her demons.

I also adored the relationship between Annabel and Owen – it is so good. I just loved it. Every romance should be like this!

On the back of this I bought every Sarah Dessen book I could get my hands on and have already read Lock and Key and Along for the Ride – both of which I really enjoyed. I'm looking forward to reading all her others.