The Friend Zone - Abby Jimenez

Title: The Friend Zone 
Author: Abby Jimenez 
Format: E-book
Rating: 2 stars 

Reader friends, I wanted to like this book. I really did. I wanted to fawn over it as much as I fawned over Life's too Short (yes, I read her third book first).  This book, however, fell short in so many ways.  

Kristen, the lady MC, is great at some things, but so, so stubborn at other things, and most of the things where she dug her heels in made me so frustrated.  She was told over and over and over by Josh that he loved her no matter what and it wasn't until something VERY BAD happened that she believed it. Josh, to be fair, spent a lot of time talking about how he ONLY wanted children that he helped create, and did not want to adopt.  I could understand some of where Kristen was coming from in this regard.  However, after Josh realized this was what was so upsetting to her, he changed a lot having time to think about it, and he came to the conclusion he'd have kids or not have kids or adopt or whatever if it meant he could be with Kristen.

When the novel started with Kristen slamming those breaks on and causing Josh to bump the back of her truck, I thought their interaction was going to pave the way for a book that was truly a rom-com filled with humor and wit with the romance.  Most of the book ended up being fairly devastating. I certainly think that romance books can have sad and tragic events in them, but when the book is mostly described as a romantic comedy type book, it should veer more towards that than full on car wreck.

I DID love that the MC Kristen made and sold her own dog stairs, clothes, and toys - showing how much she loved that added a depth to her character that would have been lacking otherwise.  It also gave opportunity for Josh and Kristen to develop a relationship and get to know each other since he was helping her build the stairs that she sold. 

The friendships in the book were technically great - that was one plus for this book.  The characters all had great relationships with their friends and these relationships were well built and developed.  If every part of the story had been that well developed and well written this would have been much more of a bang up book in my opinion. 

The back and forth between the two main characters was frustrating to me - each of them was like "I love you," and then just didn't communicate about any of the details that they needed each other to know.  This led to a lot of confusion and drama that was very unnecessary to the story as a whole.  A lot of the issues could have been solved a lot earlier if they'd just talked to each other about what was really going on! 

Overall, this book was a bit of a dud for me.  If you've read this book, what did you think?  Let me know in the comments - I'm looking forward to hearing what you thought!

 

Life's Too Short - Abby Jimenez

 

Title: Life's Too Short 
Author: Abby Jimenez 
Format: E-Book 
Rating: 4 Stars 

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A brilliant and touching romantic comedy about two polar opposites, one adorable dog, and living every day to its fullest. When Vanessa Price quit her job to pursue her dream of traveling the globe, she wasn't expecting to gain millions of YouTube followers who shared her joy of seizing every moment. For her, living each day to its fullest isn't just a motto. Her mother and sister never saw the age of 30, and Vanessa doesn't want to take anything for granted. But after her half sister suddenly leaves Vanessa in custody of her baby daughter, life goes from "daily adventure" to "next-level bad" (now with bonus baby vomit in hair). The last person Vanessa expects to show up offering help is the hot lawyer next door, Adrian Copeland. After all, she barely knows him. No one warned her that he was the Secret Baby Tamer or that she'd be spending a whole lot of time with him and his geriatric Chihuahua. Now she's feeling things she's vowed not to feel. Because the only thing worse than falling for Adrian is finding a little hope for a future she may never see. 

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Romantic comedy is a great way to describe this book.  I laughed more at this book so much I'm surprised I didn't disturb my neighbors.

I Absolutely Loved:

* The two main characters.  Adrian and Vanessa are both awesome, well written characters with a truly fantastic relationship.  They start out with him not even knowing who she is (even though HE OWNS THE BUILDING THEY LIVE IN.) And they have this instant friendship that starts because he offers to help her with her niece.  The way their relationship/friendship develops from there is awesome to watch.  
* It was great to see both the MC's grow.  At the beginning of the book Adrian is so dead set against flying anywhere.  He's got bad anxiety, and he hates his dad (not going to say why - go read the book.) But almost losing Vanessa was his wake up call and he did what he needed to do to, at the very least, reconcile past relationships that were important.
* Vanessa making a life for herself traveling and donating money to find a cure for ALS.  She knew how ALS impacted people and was so, so dedicated to doing whatever she could to donate money to potentially find a cure. It showed how much she cared about other people, and about people who are affected by a really hard disease. 
* The humor throughout this book is awesome - if you have ever seen any video or post Abby Jimenez has done on TikTok or Facebook, you know this is not surprising.  She is such a comedic personality on her sites, and that translates into her book so much.
* Even though there is so much humor in this book, there is also so much heart and caring and compassion.  Even in the moments when things may seem like they'll take a comedic turn (the baby having explosive poop), there is this wonderful caring and heart aspect to this whole book.  It's very well rounded and well written.  
* The way the growth of each character led them to redevelop relationships they thought were no longer important to them.

There wasn't anything I can think of that I didn't love about this book.  It was humorous, well written, and had great, well developed characters.  I also loved that it took place in Minnesota.  As a Minnesota lady, I know there aren't tons of books set here, so when we have one, we're very excited.  

If you haven't read this book yet, I highly recommend it.  If you have read it, let me know what you thought in the comments!

Everything Everything

 

Title: Everything Everything
Author: Nicola Yoon
Format: Paperback
Rating: 3.5 Stars

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My disease is as rare as it is famous. It’s a form of Severe Combined Immunodeficiency, but basically, I’m allergic to the world. I don’t leave my house, have not left my house in fifteen years. The only people I ever see are my mom and my nurse, Carla.

But then one day, a moving truck arrives. New next door neighbors. I look out the window, and I see him. He’s tall, lean and wearing all black—black t-shirt, black jeans, black sneakers and a black knit cap that covers his hair completely. He catches me looking and stares at me. I stare right back. His name is Olly. I want to learn everything about him, and I do. I learn that he is funny and fierce. I learn that his eyes are Atlantic Ocean-blue and that his vice is stealing silverware. I learn that when I talk to him, my whole world opens up, and I feel myself starting to change—starting to want things. To want out of my bubble. To want everything, everything the world has to offer.

Maybe we can’t predict the future, but we can predict some things. For example, I am certainly going to fall in love with Olly. It’s almost certainly going to be a disaster.

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Everything Everything is a wollop of a book that has a lot of really great things about it.  However, it also has a lot of problems. 

What did I Like About This Book: 

* Carla.  I Love Carla. She is a wonderful, caring human and it broke my heart when Maddy's mom fired her. (Even though, you know, she came back.)
* Maddy finally researching her life on her own and learning to really advocate for herself.
* Going to Hawaii actually turned out to be a really good thing in the end.

What Didn't I like About This Book:

* Insta-Love.  Olly and Maddy meet through Maddy's window.  They chat online through email, and then chat with each other solely through the internet.  Everything Maddy learns about him she learns through online talk and seeing him through her window.  Now look, I certainly don't mean to downplay the importance of people you meet through the internet.  What concerns me in this case is that Maddy is so naive.  That makes it hard for me to trust that Maddy really knows what she's doing.
* Why the hell did Maddy think it was a good idea to go to Hawaii before she knew she didn't have SCID?!
*Carla spent so much time with Maddy and her mom.  She clearly realized that something was wrong with Maddy's mother, why didn't she say anything?

I think this book was a good idea, I did like it, but I do wish there were a few things that would have been different and more well developed.  

I'd definitely recommend this if you are looking for a book that is good, and sad sure, but still light enough.

There's Something About Sweetie - Sandhya Menon

Title: There's Something About Sweetie
Author: Sandhya Menon
Format: Hardcover
Rating 5 Stars

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Ashish Patel didn’t know love could be so…sucky. After he’s dumped by his ex-girlfriend, his mojo goes AWOL. Even worse, his parents are annoyingly, smugly confident they could find him a better match. So, in a moment of weakness, Ash challenges them to set him up.

The Patels insist that Ashish date an Indian-American girl—under contract. Per subclause 1(a), he’ll be taking his date on “fun” excursions like visiting the Hindu temple and his eccentric Gita Auntie. Kill him now. How is this ever going to work?

Sweetie Nair is many things: a formidable track athlete who can outrun most people in California, a loyal friend, a shower-singing champion. Oh, and she’s also fat. To Sweetie’s traditional parents, this last detail is the kiss of death.

Sweetie loves her parents, but she’s so tired of being told she’s lacking because she’s fat. She decides it’s time to kick off the Sassy Sweetie Project, where she’ll show the world (and herself) what she’s really made of.

Ashish and Sweetie both have something to prove. But with each date they realize there’s an unexpected magic growing between them. Can they find their true selves without losing each other?

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Hi reader friends!  Let's talk about Sweetie and Ashish. 

If you've read When Dimple Met Rishi, you are already slightly familiar with Rishi's younger brother Ashish Patel.  Ashish is as different from Rishi as you could possibly imagine.  He's not as traditional as his older brother, he's into sports - specifically basketball, he (until recently) never wanted to follow his parents or brothers lead and date Indian-American girls.  BUT, then he met Sweetie. 

Sweetie is a wonderful, charming young woman who also happens to be fat - and is growing up with a mother who really wants her to lose weight and be skinny.  Her mom is so convinced that there is something wrong with Sweetie that she even goes so far as to tell Ashish's parents that Sweetie can't date him because she's not good enough for Ashish and won't be until she's skinny. 

Anyway - long story short - Ashish and Sweetie do go on dates together, as you can tell from the description.  Now of course, Sweetie's parents don't know - and normally I'd be against kids dating without their parents knowledge, but in this case, it works and I'm here for it.

Let's break down the love here now!

There is a great, wonderful cast of characters in this book.  I think every single character adds so much to this story - even when they just have small part to play in where the story is going.  Each character has such a well developed and distinct personality. The author does a great job of creating characters that are well written, with their own distinct personalities, who work well with each other.  Even the characters who's personalities were a bit much (Tina auntie, and Samir in the beginning of the novel) were so well done!  You will love these characters.  (Watch out for Pinky - she's great and so fun!)

I think there is also a lot of chemistry between Sweetie and Ashish.  They have the physical attraction to each other, and they learn that they have enough in common with each other as well to have a real, good relationship.  I love what they have together.

This story is a total cute, fun read.  The story is well developed, and there are so many fun and funny moments that just make it even more worth reading.  I love that each moment in this book feels perfect and fits with the book as a whole.

Sandhya Menon's books are well written as always - and I love that she manages to not only write her stories well, but to weave in so many important things to her books as well. 

Are you surprised that Sandhya Menon has supernatural references in her book?!  I'm not!  I love that she loves Supernatural as much as I do, and weaves that in to her writing.  So - let's have some of my favorite Supernatural memes and gifs to end this post: 

I want to actually end by saying that this book does deal with fat teens and the way that fat people can often be treated like they are less than because they are fat.  I want you to know, from one fat person to another, if you are struggling, know you are worth it. You have value even if other people claim you don't.  You will find yourself in Sweetie, and I hope you know there are other people out there who are in your corner and who love and accept you just the way you are!  Now go read this fabulous book, and when you're done, come back here and talk to me about it.  I want to know what you think! 

29 Dates - Melissa de la Cruz

Title: 29 Dates
Author: Melissa de la Cruz
Format: Hardcover
Rating: 1 Star

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How many dates will it take to find The One?

Jisu’s traditional South Korean parents are concerned by what they see as her lack of attention to her schoolwork and her future. Working with Seoul’s premiere matchmaker to find the right boyfriend is one step toward ensuring Jisu’s success, and going on the recommended dates is Jisu’s compromise to please her parents while finding space to figure out her own dreams. But when she flubs a test then skips out on a date to spend time with friends, her fed-up parents shock her by shipping her off to a private school in San Francisco. Where she’ll have the opportunity to shine academically—and be set up on more dates!

Navigating her host family, her new city and school, and more dates, Jisu finds comfort in taking the photographs that populate her ever-growing social media account. Soon attention from two very different boys sends Jisu into a tailspin of soul-searching. As her passion for photography lights her on fire, does she even want to find The One? And what if her One isn’t parent and matchmaker approved?

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My first thought when I saw the cover of this book:

My thought after I read the description and made a note of who the author was:

My thought after I actually read this book:

So, reader friends.  Here We Go.

* I am always hesitant whenever I see someone who is not from a particular culture writing a book about that culture.  Example: Melissa de la Cruz writing a book about a girl from Korea and Korean culture.  Why does this make me hesitant?  Because there is no way that anyone who is not from X culture could possibly know deep things about that culture.  There is not way someone who is not Korean could possibly understand what it really means to be Korean.  I don't care that Melissa de la Cruz's best friend from college who was Korean.  I don't care that her sister-in-law is Korean.  There is no way that Melissa de la Cruz could possibly understand the complexities of someone else's culture, especially not with enough depth to write a book based on said culture and with a Korean main character.  It's one thing to include diverse characters in your book.  It's something else entirely to write a book based on a culture of which you don't know a ton about and of which you are not a part.

The thing that make me even more hesitant about this is the way the MC and others sort of talk down about Korean culture.  First of all, her parents set her up on a seon, even though seon's are, from what I've read (and feel free to correct me if I am wrong) are usually set up between people who are older - as in out of high school.  But the author, in her own words, has "taken some liberties with this practice."  Yikes - it is alarming when someone thinks they get to take liberties with another persons culture.  Fellow human, please don't take liberties with another persons culture!

So, this kid, who is still in high school, is set up on 29 seons over the course of this book.  29!  Her parents are so into the idea of their 17 year old daughter getting married that they have already set her up on 29 seons.  And the entire time, seons are just being trashed by the MC and her friends.

* Their was NO CHEMISTRY between the MC and her love interest in the book. None.  This is supposed to be a romance, amiright?  I just wasn't feeling it. 

* Their was no discussion about how hard it must have been for Jisu to move from Seoul to San Francisco.  Which, I mean, how could there be, because how could Melissa de la Cruz possibly know how that could feel. I am not being sarcastic here - there is no way that de la Cruz could possibly know what it's like for a young girl from Korea to just get shipped off to a new country and try to adjust.  There is no way. 

* What's with the "Hey we know you just woke up, but surprise, here's a ticket to SF for TODAY?!"  Seriously?  Her parents gave her zero warning they were just shipping her off to another country.  Who Does That?!

* In addition to the above issues...... the writing was mediocre at best, and there was minimal character development - especially for Jisu's 2 best friends, Min and Euni.  They were small characters in the story, still, but even with them - you didn't have a chance to really know them or more important characters, and there was no change or growth. 

Overall, I feel like 1 star is generous for this book, but I have to give it some sort of rating. If you've read this book, tell me what you think in the comments.

Top Ten Tuesday: Favorite Couples In Books

Hey reader friends - welcome to Top Ten Tuesday, a weekly meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl!  This week we're talking about Favorite Couples In Books!

If you've been around my blog at all, many of these probably won't come as a surprise to you.

Clara and Hamlet in The Way You Make me Feel are amazing - and this is, so far, my favorite book by Maurene Goo!  

While the way that Desi got a boy may have been a little.... unique - I do love Desi and Luca!  

When Dimple Met Rishi starts out with 2 characters who are on opposite ends of the spectrum of having a relationship, and ends with them in love in the most adorable way.  Dimple and Rishi are perfect together! 

Twinkle and Sahil in From Twinkle, With Love are perfect together - even if it takes a minute for Twinkle to realize it (because she loves his twin brother at first!)  I think the reason I love them so much together is because Sahil does such a good job of keeping Twinkle real and calling her out when she gets a little.... wild with her movie.

 Rufus and Mateo are two of my favorite characters - and even though you know they are both going to die by the end of the book - I loved their togetherness through this entire book!

 Hazel and Gus in The Fault in Our Stars - they have this amazing relationship together, and while it is punctuated by them both having cancer, they have this ability to be there for each other in the most amazing ways.

 Simon and Bram (Blue) in Simon Vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda.  This was, hands down, my favorite book that I read last year, and there was not one single moment when I wasn't cheering my ass off for Simon. 

Cheesy Romance Love!

Hey reader friends!  It's February.  That means it's the perfect time of year to talk about cheesy romance books.  These are books that are sure to make your heart flutter (even if some of them are total clean teen books!)

1. Lucky in Love - Kasie West

2. Listen to your Heart - Kasie West

3. Tell Me Everything - Sarah Enni

4. I Believe in a Thing Called Love - Maurene Goo

5. The Way You Make Me Feel - Maurene Goo 

6. Simon Vs. The Home Sapiens Agenda - Becky Albertalli

7. When Dimple Met Rishi - Sandhya Menon

8. From Twinkle With Love - Sandhya Menon 






This is not, obviously, a complete list of all romance books!  These are just some of the ones I really enjoyed.  Feel free to drop your favorite romances (YA or adult) in the comments.