Review: Things I Can't Forget by Miranda Kenneally

Title: Things I Can't Forget (Hundred Oaks #3)
Author: Miranda Kenneally
Published: March 1st 2013
Add It: Goodreads
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository

Companion to Catching Jordan and Stealing Parker.

Kate has always been the good girl. Too good, according to some people at school—although they have no idea the guilty secret she carries. But this summer, everything is different…
This summer she’s a counselor at Cumberland Creek summer camp, and she wants to put the past behind her. This summer Matt is back as a counselor too. He’s the first guy she ever kissed, and he’s gone from a geeky songwriter who loved The Hardy Boys to a buff lifeguard who loves to flirt--with her.
Kate used to think the world was black and white, right and wrong. Turns out, life isn’t that easy…

This series has been tough for me in the sense that I loved Catching Jordan so much. It suited me well at the time and I still adore it to pieces, but Stealing Parker, while still enjoyable, was not exactly my cup of tea. I liked it, but not as much as the first book. After hearing how people felt like Things I Can’t Forget was a tad preachy.. Idk. I was expecting to feel lukewarm about it, but guess what? I actually liked this one!

Top Ten Books On My Summer TBR

Hey there, my lovelies! It's been a while since my last top ten list, but this topic was just perfect to get back on track with these. I'm great at making lists, but awful at following them so if you love something from this list, all the love and promoting goes! I need the extra excitement to follow this list through and to really try and give each one a chance :) If you're not participating on today's TTT, just leave some of your must reads in the comments, perhaps I can cheer you on a little too ;) Anyhow, this list was so hard to make, but I managed to come up with ten and then some, ha. Let's see what I picked, shall we? :)

January Wrap Up

For the past year I've watched people among blogosphere and booktube wrap up their previous months when it comes to reading, set goals for the next and just talk and gush about all things bookish. I always love reading two of them especially: Amber's [Books of Amber] and Rachel & Jasprit's [The Reader's Den]. Edit: since I forgot to add the giveaway and poll, then these will be added in the next month's wrap up post with double amount of books to choose from. 

January reviews (click on the covers for the links)

Books read in total? The total amount of books I read in January is 20. A LOT, I know. For me it is, at least. I just kind of had the month off except for work, because I managed to do so well last semester that I had zero exams. Plus, three of the books I read were novellas which read extremely fast. February will be a lot more laid back for me.

Lowest and highest ratings were 4.9 and DNF. I gave 5.0 to Under the Never Sky when I re-read it, because I realized that I love absolutely everything about it (even though I gave 3.5 when I first read it.. yep, I don't know how that happened...), but since it's a re-read then it doesn't count in my eyes, so 4.9 it is.

Book boyfriend of the month is a tie between Perry and Roar. I just love them both equally and you cannot make me choose to save my life. The runner-up is Braden Carmichael which Aman totally approves of, I'm sure ;)

Love triangles? There was only one book that had a decent love triangle and that is Hallowed by Cynthia Hand where Christian Prescott *scowls* and Tucker Avery *beams* fight for Clara's heart. Other than that, there were books that held some love-triangely tension, but I wouldn't call them love triangles because the choice is very, very obvious.

What I'm planning on reading... I'm so bad with tbr-s, you have no idea. If I make a tbr, you can be certain that I won't read anything from the list. Though, since Nick is reading The Bone Season this month, I'm planning on reading it with her. Perhaps I'll join the Angelfall readalong with Aman and Janhvi. Perhaps I'll read Cress right away depending on how bad I need it after Scarlet. What's for certain though is that I will read Into the Still Blue BECAUSE. Because!!! I need it more than my next breath basically. So I'm definitely reading this pretty thing:

That's it for me on January. I think I'll take it slow this month, because it's the beginning of spring semester and my final one (hopefully) before I get my BA degree. I need to work on my thesis, finish the semester, graduate, go to work (hopefully more often than last fall), hopefully read some awesome books and hopefully blog without taking huge breaks. Anyhow, I have some questions for you, because I'm nosy like that and want to know :) ...

What were your favorite books last month? Any new book boyfriends I should know about? (Or any old crushes returning to the pages you were reading?) ;) How many books did you read? What are you planning on reading this month?

Review: Stealing Parker by Miranda Kenneally

Title: Stealing Parker (Hundred Oaks #2)
Author: Miranda Kenneally
Published: October 1st 2012
Add It: Goodreads
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository

Red-hot author Miranda Kenneally hits one out of the park in this return to Catching Jordan's Hundred Oaks High.
Parker Shelton pretty much has the perfect life. She’s on her way to becoming valedictorian at Hundred Oaks High, she’s made the all-star softball team, and she has plenty of friends. Then her mother’s scandal rocks their small town and suddenly no one will talk to her.
Now Parker wants a new life.
So she quits softball. Drops twenty pounds. And she figures why kiss one guy when she can kiss three? Or four. Why limit herself to high school boys when the majorly cute new baseball coach seems especially flirty?
But how far is too far before she loses herself completely?

Discovering Miranda Kenneally last year as one of the biggest contemporary YA sensations was really awesome. I adore her smooth, effortless writing and sweet, real and honest characters. They're easy to relate to and make rooting for them fun. Whereas I absolutely loved Catching Jordan, Stealing Parker unfortunately didn't live up to my hopes. Let me tell you all about it.

“Sometimes you gotta do what’s right for you and forget about everybody else. All that matters is what you want. What you need.”

First of all, I had heard that these books held religion in them, but it wasn't such a huge part in Jordan's book. Stealing Parker was more religion-oriented and while I don't judge anyone who is even slightly religious, no, it did make me feel a little uncomfortable I guess. I actually wasn't a big fan of Parker, but she did grow on me with the last couple of chapters. I guess I didn't fully understand her that much, hence me not connecting with her.

The three guys in Parker's life

1. At the beginning of the novel, I was impressed with Drew. He came out of the closet. (Sort of.) He was a great friend. Then, all of the sudden, I was really disappointed in Drew when he turned his back on Parker thanks to that thing with Will. She was right, he didn’t listen to her nor let her explain. He came back though, didn’t he? I guess I can forgive him.
2. I loved Will. He was such a refreshing character and I like how even though the guys in Miranda’s books are pretty much as popular as they come, they aren’t jerks nor are they dark, mysterious etc. They’re still ordinary, flawed guys, but they’re also friendly, caring and fun. That makes Sam Henry and Will so awesome and great to root for. 
3. On another note, I didn’t like this Brian guy at all. He was such a d-bag. He was so selfish and I still don’t know if he truly cared about Parker or just wanted to have a good time. The way he said Park to her, made me furrow my brows and widen my eyes. Dude, it wasn’t cute, but rather annoying actually.

My favorite part of the book: Parker and her mom

Even though romance rules as a king on a high throne in this plot, the biggest issue is still Parker and her mom because if it wasn’t for what happened, Parker probably wouldn’t be hooking up with all of these people. She’s so upset with her mom and the fallback that happened after she left and it was heartbreaking to watch. When they finally reconnected, it was the most emotional part of my reading experience regarding this book. I really liked the ending. Also, I agreed with Parker’s mom when she said that some people are better of friends than lovers. That’s a grain of life wisdom, cupcakes!

All in all, I was let down by this piece. I didn’t really connect with Parker nor was I fan of the plot. I guess I had these huge expectations after finishing Catching Jordan and loving every minute of it, but you know.. I’m not giving up on Miranda. Her writing is strong and the ending chapters are always my favorite--the ones where the story comes together. There are 4 more books for me to explore and I will devour them all piece by piece. Some of them sooner than later :)

Overall rating: 2.5 out of 5 
Stars: ★★★

Meet the author

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

Review: Catching Jordan by Miranda Kenneally

Title: Catching Jordan (Hundred Oaks #1)
Author: Miranda Kenneally
Published: December 1st 2011
Add It: Goodreads
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository

What girl doesn't want to be surrounded by gorgeous jocks day in and day out? Jordan Woods isn't just surrounded by hot guys, though-she leads them as the captain and quarterback of her high school football team. They all see her as one of the guys and that's just fine. As long as she gets her athletic scholarship to a powerhouse university.
But everything she's ever worked for is threatened when Ty Green moves to her school. Not only is he an amazing QB, but he's also amazingly hot. And for the first time, Jordan's feeling vulnerable. Can she keep her head in the game while her heart's on the line?

During my 1.5 years of blogging, this book, or rather series, has been everywhere. All the bloggers I'm more close with have all been raving about the sensation that is Miranda Kenneally. Did I believe them? I must admit that I was sceptical. Come on! It can't be that a book is just that good, can it? When I ordered Hundred Oaks’ books from The Book Depository, I kept my fingers crossed like no other that they wouldn’t be a disappointment.

“One thing I learned a long time ago is that even if you think you're meant to be with someone, that doesn't necessarily mean you get to be with them.” 

I’m not going to recap the synopsis in my own words or try to make the novel appealing, because the real synopsis isn’t spoilery and it’s short, accurate and doesn’t give away jazz. If you're not familiar with the synopsis, scroll up a bit and read it :) 

I thought I had it all figured out. I guess the joke is on me—Catching Jordan was nothing like I expected. Jordan was a great main character. I liked her strength which was spiced with a touch of vulnerability and insecurities. What I enjoy about contemporaries are the characters since fantasy, dystopian and paranormal novels usually require a lot of world-building. Contemporaries, however, are all about the characters and their daily struggles. Jordan made some doubtable decisions I was frustrated with, yet let’s not forget how much pressure was on her by being a senior quarterback, plus the issues with her dad, never having had a boyfriend and having to compete with someone for a starter place in her own team. That’s a lot to deal with and I understand how that can push one’s character down a few steps.

This novel was packed with awesome people and that was what I loved the most. If you were to ask about my favorite one, I’d say it was Sam Henry, no doubts. At first, it was hard for me to connect with Jordan, but when I read about her relationship with her best friend, I was able to somewhat identify with her and little by little she took a place in my heart. Also, I have never taken interest in American football. Soccer? Um, yes, most definitely. They’re not exactly the same though, are they? ;) It was a bit confusing at first, but Jordan was able to make me interested and keep my focus on the plot throughout the entire book. This one wasn’t an ugly cry for me, but I cried a lot. Jordan, Henry, JJ, Carter, Jordan’s family, Marie and Carrie—they all sneaked their way into my heart and it was hard to watch everything fall apart. I guess when you hit rock bottom, the only way is up. That's exactly what happened with this cast.

The only reason I’m not giving this pretty 5 stars is that I didn’t connect with the characters right off the bat. I absolutely adored how permanent and there Jordan’s family was, how the problems she had were so real and relatable. I had lots of laughing out loud moments and shed more than a few tears. I think the hype around Miranda and this series is completely justified. Catching Jordan couldn’t have ended any better and I’m eagerly looking forward to continuing this wonderful series of companion novels. If you haven’t tried them yet, I advise you to do it soon. Read on, lovelies!

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Meet the author

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

Book Haul #25

This post will start with an apology. I'm sorry for not having been the greates blogger or commenter throughout the past few weeks. It's my final BA year in uni and I have to work harder than ever before. Plus, I have a part-time job, so blog and reading kind of take the third place in my to-do list. I'm slowly getting back to the rhythm of school and work though and I promise I can do better. I'm scheduling posts for next week and I promise to do more reviews, too. Anyhow, this week was amazing for me when it comes to books: I received three books that I've been dying to read and also snagged a few e-copies that came out this week. As always, if you've read any of these, let me know what you thought and don't forget to leave your links down below so I can visit all of you lovelies back!

Physical Copies

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Things I Can't Forget (Hundred Oaks #3) by Miranda Kenneally

E-books

I'd Love to Tell You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You (Gallagher Girls #1) by Ally Carter

In the Fields by Willow Aster

The Burning Sky (The Elemental Trilogy #1) by Sherry Thomas

A Little Too Far (A Little Too Far #1) by Lisa Desrochers

Swag

I received a signed bookmark of Ten Tiny Breaths by K.A. Tucker which I won during NA Crush Tourney via I Heart Big Books. Thanks so much, girl! It looks gorgeous:)

Oh, one more thing! I wrote down all my unread paperbacks/hardcovers and I'll pick my next reads randomly from there and guess what? I picked Lola and the Boy Next Door which I am absolutely l-o-v-i-n-g! I didn't have that good luck with Anna's book last summer (which I'm beginning to realize was kind of awesome, too.. I guess my values of reading have changed a little during the course of a year.) and I can't understand how come I waited so long to give Lola's story a try. I can't wait to see what I'll pick next!

Oh and there are a LOT of giveaways to participate in (check either the giveaway tab under the blog title or the top of the sidebar) and only one week left to participate in my favorite one--my birthday giveaway. I wish you all the best of luck!

What did you get this week? Leave your links below and I'll check out your goodies :)

In My Mailbox is a weekly event hosted by The Mod Podge Bookshelf and Stacking the Shelves is a weekly event hosted by Tynga's Reviews.

Book Haul #23

Haven't done one in ages and I've received quite a bit of books and even some gorgeous swag:) If you've read any of these titles, let me know so I can push them up on my tbr pile and don't forget to leave your links below in the comments so I can visit you back. Have a great weekend, lovelies!

Physical copies

The 5th Wave (The 5th Wave #1) by Rick Yancey

Soul Screamers Volume Three by Rachel Vincent (includes books #5, #6 and Sophie's novella)

Stealing Parker (Hundred Oaks #2) by Miranda Kenneally

Catching Jordan (Hundred Oaks #1) by Miranda Kenneally (read and l-o-v-e-d!!!, review will be up soon)

Lola and the Boy Next Door (Anna and the French Kiss #2) by Stephanie Perkins

E-books

Truth about You and Me by Amanda Grace (arc)

Escaping Reality (The Secret Life of Amy Bensen #1) by Lisa Renee Jones (arc)

Out of Line by Jen McLaughnlin (arc)

What Endures by Katie Lee (arc)

Ricochet (Addicted to You #1.5) by Krista and Becca Ritchie

Letters to Nowhere by Julie Cross

If You Leave (Beautifully Broken #2) by Courtney Cole

Jordyn by Tiffany King. This was an Amazon freebie. You can find it here. I've been waiting to own this pretty for a long time and I've only heard great things about Tiffany's writing so it was a must 'purchase'.

There were two awesome moments on what seemed to be quite an ordinary day of August. First, I received gorgeous swag from the very talented Elizabeth Norris. I read Unraveling  (my review can be found here) this spring and loved loved loved this book so hard. It was one of these books that I knew I had to have on my shelf as a physical copy as well so I purchased a paperback copy. It arrived way back, but this one book made Elizabeth one of my favorite authors. Since I obviously can't fly across the Atlantic to any of her signings, she kindly provided me with a bookplate. I was wayyyyyyy too happy about it to consider me normal, hehe:) Also, the always wonderful Jasprit from The Reader's Den  sent me a copy of The 5th Wave which I've been pining over ever since these raving reviews started to pop up among blogosphere. She loved it, Rachel, her co-blogger, loved it and everyone loves this book so am I excited? You betcha ;)

HUGE thanks and hugs to Elizabeth Norris and Jasprit, also, big thanks to Flux, Julie Patra publishing, Jen McLaughlin, Inksplinger PR, Katie Lee and Netgalley.

What did you get this week? Leave your links below and I'll check out your goodies :)

In My Mailbox is a weekly event hosted by The Mod Podge Bookshelf and Stacking the Shelves is a weekly event hosted by Tynga's Reviews.