Category: Viking Juvenile

Review: The Strange Fascinations of Noah Hypnotik by David Arnold

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Review: The Strange Fascinations of Noah Hypnotik by David ArnoldTitle: The Strange Fascinations of Noah Hypnotik
Author: David Arnold
Publisher: Viking Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: May 22, 2018

four-stars
Summary (from Goodreads):

“An epic wonder”* from the bestselling author of Mosquitoland

This is Noah Oakman → sixteen, Bowie believer, concise historian, disillusioned swimmer, son, brother, friend.

Then Noah → gets hypnotized.

Now Noah → sees changes: his mother has a scar on her face that wasn’t there before; his old dog, who once walked with a limp, is suddenly lithe; his best friend, a lifelong DC Comics disciple, now rotates in the Marvel universe. Subtle behaviors, bits of history, plans for the future—everything in Noah’s world has been rewritten. Everything except his Strange Fascinations . . .

Amazon | Book Depository

❃ I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. ❃

Review

The Strange Fascinations of Noah Hypnotik by David Arnold is a unique story about a boy who gets hypnotized. The main character is realistic, and the writing style is so entertaining. I would definitely recommend this book, since it is such a wild ride.  Continue reading →

Review: I Have Lost My Way by Gayle Forman

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Review: I Have Lost My Way by Gayle FormanTitle: I Have Lost My Way
Author: Gayle Forman
Publisher: Viking Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: March 27, 2018

three-half-stars
Summary (from Goodreads):

A powerful story of empathy and friendship from the #1 New York Times Bestselling author of If I Stay.

Around the time that Freya loses her voice while recording her debut album, Harun is making plans to run away from everyone he has ever loved, and Nathaniel is arriving in New York City with a backpack, a desperate plan, and nothing left to lose. When a fateful accident draws these three strangers together, their secrets start to unravel as they begin to understand that the way out of their own loss might just lie in help­ing the others out of theirs.

An emotionally cathartic story of losing love, finding love, and discovering the person you are meant to be, I Have Lost My Way is best­selling author Gayle Forman at her finest.

Amazon | Book Depository

❃ I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. ❃

Review

I have been a fan of Gayle Forman for a while now, and I have been dying to read I Have Lost My Way since it was first announced. The story focuses on three characters who meet because of an accident, and I enjoyed each of them. However, the plot is hard to believe, and I had a hard time getting into it. Compared to Forman’s other books, I Have Lost My Way just doesn’t compare. Continue reading →

ARC Review: The Fashion Committee by Susan Juby

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Book cover for The Fashion Committee by Susan Juby

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Title: The Fashion Committee
Author: Susan Juby
Publisher: Viking Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: May 23, 2017
Stars: 3/5

Summary (from Goodreads): “The Fashion Committee is another winner by one of my all time favorite authors.”–Meg Cabot, New York Timesbestselling author of the The Princess Diaries and Mediator series

Charlie Dean is a style-obsessed girl who eats, sleeps, and breathes fashion. John Thomas-Smith is a boy who forges metal sculptures in his garage and couldn’t care less about clothes. Both are gunning for a scholarship to the private art high school that could make all their dreams come true. Whoever wins the fashion competition will win the scholarship–and only one can win.
Told in the alternating voices of Charlie’s and John’s journals, this hilarious and poignant YA novel perfectly captures what it’s like to have an artistic drive so fierce that nothing–not your dad’s girlfriend’s drug-addicted ex-boyfriend, a soul-crushing job at Salad Stop, or being charged with a teensy bit of kidnapping–can stand in your way.
With black and white art custom-created by fashion and beauty illustrator Soleil Ignacio, the book is a collector’s item, perfect for anyone with a passion for fashion. Continue reading →

ARC Review: Everything Beautiful is Not Ruined by Danielle Younge-Ullman

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Book cover for Everything Beautiful is Not Ruined by Danielle Young-Ullman

I received an e-ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Title: Everything Beautiful is Not Ruined
Publisher: Viking Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: February 21, 2017
Stars: 4/5

Summary (from Goodreads): Wild meets The Breakfast Club in this story of a girl who must survive an extreme wilderness experience to prove to her mother that she has the strength to pursue her dreams.

Then 
Ingrid traveled all over Europe with her opera star mother, Margot-Sophia. Life was beautiful and bright, and every day soared with music.

Now 
Ingrid is on a summertime wilderness survival trek for at-risk teens: addicts, runaways, and her. She’s fighting to survive crushing humiliations, physical challenges that push her to her limits, and mind games that threaten to break her.

Then 
When the curtain fell on Margot-Sophia’s singing career, they buried the past and settled into a small, painfully normal life. But Ingrid longed to let the music soar again. She wanted it so much that, for a while, nothing else mattered.

Now 
Ingrid is never going to make it through this summer if she can’t figure out why she’s here . . . and why the music really stopped. Continue reading →

ARC Review: The Forbidden Orchid by Sharon Biggs Waller

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Book cover for The Forbidden Orchid by Sharon Biggs Waller.

I received an e-ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Title: The Forbidden Orchid
Author: Sharon Biggs Waller
Publisher: Viking
Publication Date: March 8, 2016
Stars: 4/5

Summary (from Goodreads): Staid, responsible Elodie Buchanan is the eldest of ten sisters living in a small English market town in 1861. The girls’ father is a plant hunter, usually off adventuring through the jungles of China.

Then disaster strikes: Mr. Buchanan fails to collect an extremely rare and valuable orchid, meaning that he will be thrown into debtors’ prison and the girls will be sent to the orphanage or the poorhouse. Elodie’s father has one last chance to return to China, find the orchid, and save the family—and this time, thanks to an unforeseen twist of fate, Elodie is going with him. Elodie has never before left her village, but what starts as fear turns to wonder as she adapts to seafaring life aboard the tea clipper The Osprey, and later to the new sights, dangers, and romance of China.

But even if she can find the orchid, how can she find herself now that staid, responsible Elodie has seen how much the world has to offer? Continue reading →