Review: Something Like Normal by Trish Doller

Summary from Goodreads:
When Travis returns home from a stint in Afghanistan, his parents are splitting up, his brother’s stolen his girlfriend and his car, and he’s haunted by nightmares of his best friend’s death. It’s not until Travis runs into Harper, a girl he’s had a rocky relationship with since middle school, that life actually starts looking up. And as he and Harper see more of each other, he begins to pick his way through the minefield of family problems and post-traumatic stress to the possibility of a life that might resemble normal again. Travis’s dry sense of humor, and incredible sense of honor, make him an irresistible and eminently lovable hero.

Review: 

This book was great! I love a good contemporary and this book was right up my alley. The story starts with Travis, a Marine that has just arrived from Afghanistan. Only he realizes that home doesn't feel like home anymore. His brother took his girlfriend and his car. His father is still judging his every move. How could that place feel like his home after everything he's seen?

As a protagonist Travis was one of the best that I have read about in a long time. He's funny and sarcastic, but at the same time he's going through a situation that you hope he gets through in one piece. You root for him to gain the strength he needs to face his troubles. Something else I really liked about Travis as a character is that you can relate easily to him.

When it comes to other characters I enjoyed them all. Harper was the perfect companion to Travis. She was spunky and was her own person. Even characters like Travis's Dad, who was a nightmare of a man, was a good character.

As for the plot it was perfect. I never suffered through boring moments. There isn't much I can say without raving about how amazing this book is. If you're looking for a great contemporary read pick this book up ASAP!

Grade:

A+

Book Haul : Library Edition & Some Exciting News

You can now find me on YouTube!!!!!!

Feel free to go to my channel and subscribe. There will be times when I'll make videos and won't post them on the blog. I hope you guys enjoy my book vlogs because I know I'll enjoy making the videos for you guys to watch.

Now on to the other piece of exciting information ...

*drum roll*

I am now an intern at Month9Books! I am so excited to be working with such a great imprint. For those of you who don't know Month9Books publishes horror, supernatural and science fiction books along with other genres. Their first anthology is to be published in October of this year.A portion of the proceeds will be going to a charity which I think is fantastic. I am so honored to be a part of such a great group!

Review: Dancergirl by Carol M. Tanzman

Summary from Goodreads:

Ever feel like someone's watching you? Me, too. But lately it's been happening in my room.

When I'm alone.

A friend posted a video of me dancing online, and now I'm no longer Alicia Ruffino. I'm dancergirl. And suddenly it's like me against the world.— everyone's got opinions.

My admirers want more, the haters hate, my best friend Jacy,— even he's acting weird. And some stalker isn't content to just watch anymore.

Ali. Dancergirl. Whatever you know me as, however you've seen me online, I've trained my whole life to be the best dancer I can be. But if someone watching has their way, I could lose way more than just my love of dancing. I could lose my life.

Review:

Alicia lives to dance. After a friend records her dancing she becomes a star. But with the fame comes a price.

I loved this book! When I first decided to read it I thought it was going to be mostly about Alicia and her love of dancing. I was pleasantly surprised when it turned out to be more about Ali solving who is stalking her because of her dancing videos that go viral (although there was plenty of dance).

From the very beginning this book had me hooked. I think one of the things I liked the most about the book was that it was realistic. The teenagers in the book did what teenagers in real life do, which made me relate with the characters. Well, most of the things they did are done by teenagers in real life.

As a protagonist Alicia is great. I liked the way the story was told through her eyes because it gives you the full impact about what's happening to her. All her friends were equally as charming, although at times I wanted to knock some sense into Jacy, Alicia's best friend.

The only problem I had with the novel was that when it came time to solve who's the person stalking Ali some of the clues that were missed by Alicia and her friends were obvious, at least to me. But that didn't take away from the novel. In fact when I think about it it made the novel more believable, although I'm sure that wasn't the author's intention haha.

I highly recommend this book! Although not exactly a light read, it's an easy read because you get lost in the challenge that Alicia and her friends are faced with. The suspense was good, the characters were great and I even got a good laugh in here and there.

Grade:

A-/B+