January 2017 Reading Wrap Up: PART 1

January 2017 Reading Stats: I read 18 books this month

Goodreads Rating System:

5 Star-It was Amazing

4 Star-Really Liked It

3 Star-Liked It

2 Star-It was Ok

1 Star-Did not like It

My Rating: 2 Stars
Format: Hard Cover
Photo Source: Goodreads

My Thoughts:
I could not get into the writing style at all and found myself skipping sections to just get through it. The Truth section was were I finally slowed down since it revealed what was going in the story.

I like the twist, but just did not like the majority of the book.

My Rating: 2 Stars
Format: Kindle
Photo Source: Goodreads

My Thoughts:
I get why people love this and the ratings are so high. When a book is dealing with these issues and losing someone, especially so young, emotions will run high. But I think you have to take a step back and really look at the whole book. I can't rate this just since it has a sad plot and ending. I don't like anything else about it but that.

My favorite part was when the grandmother was leaving the special gift to Poppy. I cried right off the bat, and was excited for what this would bring. Then it went downhill from there.

I could not connect with the characters. I did not feel they were realistic, especially when they were 8 years old. I was also over the "I love you, you are my life." It was in every other sentence.

I did not like how Rune treated his parents. He was only 15. If I ever spoke to my parents in that way, I would be dead. I just think it was a little too much.

The ending was so sad. Rune was only 27/28 years old. Never moved on with his life and then died. so young.

I do not know, I know so many people loved this, but it just fell really flat for me.

My Rating: 4 Stars
Format: Kindle
Photo Source: Goodreads

My Thoughts:
“This is how I kill someone. And I don’t feel bad about it.”

Now, that is how a book captures and pulls you in to want to read more. I will tell you I have heard so many great things about this book. I read it on my Kindle, and about 35% into the book all I knew was a girl was dead. You really do not know much more or what else is going to happen. But, I promise you that you need to keep reading. The pace picks up the second half of the book and you will not want to put it down.

I know everyone is saying that this is a great book dealing with rape and rape in our society, but I think it is so much more than that. This book is dealing with relationships, mental health, rape, drugs, friendship, and love. But, most of all, this book is dealing with coping with losing a loved one.
I am still not really sure what the heck happened with the ending of this book. I do think the tributes to the past survivors and how they looked up to Alex could have been more powerful and brought so much more emotion to this book. However; it was still will hit your emotions and in a powerful way.

The writing is something that is very different than I am used too. I normally read pretty fast, but you really need to take your time with this. The sentences will not run as smoothly as you may be used too (but this is also part of the charm of Alex). I actually really liked it.

Just throwing this out there, since I am not sure where to put it in my review, but I also loved this quote, "A smile is the same in every language."

Great read and recommend giving it a try.

My Rating: 2 Stars
Format: Paperback
Photo Source: Goodreads

My Thoughts:
The title for this book is perfect since it really is about Lola and the boy next door. I want to say, I really enjoyed Anna and the French Kiss, but this was just boring to me. I still really enjoyed Stephanie Perkins writing and I plan to finish the series.

I really liked how this started off. You have a mystery of how Cricket hurt Lola and then it is revealed how and it is such a disappointment. You also have a weird love triangle which one character was barely present except to bring the triangle to life. Max never stood a chance, even though I actually liked his character at times. I think his portrayal changes and it did not make sense. It starts off where he would do anything to please Lola and her parents and then instantly he becomes a character the author wants you to hate.

I also did not love Cricket. I just could not connect with Lola or Cricket or their relationship. I was getting so bored with everything I had to skip ahead just to finish reading this.

I had a love/hate relationship when St. Claire and Anna were mentioned. I feel they were also different characters than what I grew to love in Anna and the French Kiss.

I will finish the next book, but I hope it is better than this one.

My Rating: 5 Stars
Format: Paperback
Photo Source: Goodreads

My Thoughts:
I am going to be honest that I was not expecting this book to be as amazing as it was. First off, this is over 500 pages long and I thought I was going to be bored with it until the last 100 pages (I was wrong). I also was not a huge fan of Scarlet, so I was not sure if I was going to enjoy continuing with this series. I am so glad I did, as this was amazing! The best of the series by far!

This book started off with a bang and never slowed down. The pace was fantastic. There was never a dull moment. It was action packed with providing a field of emotions. I laughed out loud, I cried, and I sat in anticipation in regards to what would happen next.

I absolutely loved what Crest brought to this series! I loved the romance between her and Thorne. When you find out about her past, I was blown away and totally caught off guard. It was just thrown in there, but it worked in a powerful way. I freaked out and admit I shed a small tear.

I know some people were upset that Scarlet was lacking in this book, but I did not mind. She was not a favorite for me and I was actually glad there was limited scenes with her involvement. I prefer reading about Cinder and Cress, so this was perfect for me.

I even loved the side characters who also evoked emotional moments. When the towns people stood up to protect Cinder I had chills. Another powerful moment!

This had everything you needed in a book: romance, lust, suspense, kidnapping, death, and surprises. You will be lost in the story with all the twist and turns.

Again, this was an amazing read and the best of the series so far. I can't wait to start the conclusion and read Winter. I hope it picks up with the intensity that Cress brought to this series. I loved it!

My Rating: 2.5 Stars
Format: Paperback
Photo Source: Goodreads

My Thoughts:
I am actually giving this around 2.5 stars, as I thought this was ok. I was really happy that this book involved characters from Anna and the French Kiss. I felt instantly more connected with Isla and Josh than I did with Lola and Cricket.

This was cute, but not much happens. If you love a romance with no twist or turns, then you will love this. Normally I prefer something else thrown into these reads to keep my interest. I was finding myself bored at times and was only reading the dialogue of from the characters at times.

I know it was brief, but I still loved the relationship with Josh and St. Claire. I loved the small twist thrown in with Anna and the older characters. The ending was my favorite part when they were all together.

Overall, I just did not love this series like everyone else. It was only ok in my opinion.

My Rating: 2 Stars
Format: Kindle
Photo Source: Goodreads

My Thoughts:
I received this book from Netgalley and Source Books in exchange for a honest review:

I flew through this and it will only take you a few hours if you are looking for a quick read. However; this fell a little flat for me and the writing was a little juvinille at times (yes, I know this is about high school students, but I am talking about the writing itself.) There is not much description, and I feel most of the characters only hit the surface of what I look for in characters.

I know this is about a high school student who is an athlete. She is trying to find herself before she leaves for college including in relationships. However; I never felt the characters were 17 years old as they felt much younger to me.

Maggie wants to learn how to "hook up" before college. She has a strange encounter while on a college visit, which could have taken a totally different turn. I did not find this at all realistic. To help her lack of experience, she asks her best friend to help her. You know immediately (even before she ask hims) that Maggies loves Levi.

I also did not really understand the Roxy rivalry. Yes, she moved on and turned her head on the friendship with Maggie. But, nothing else major came out of that situation yet Maggie was acting like she wanted to change her college choice due to being at the same college. Even her parents asked her if she still wanted to go after finding out Roxy would be there. It all just did not work for me.

I feel the tone of the book does improve as you read more, but nothing much happens. It did not really keep me entertained. Since it was such a quick read, I did finish it though. It was cute, but was only ok. Nothing that blew me away. If you love high school love or swimming, I would recommend it.

Check out part 2...Coming Soon!

Let me know what you are reading down below as I am always looking for new recommendations.

Please comment below with any comments and to show your support for Simply Kelina!

Follow me on Twitter

Follow me on Instagram

Follow me on Facebook

Follow me on Goodreads

If you interested in one of the books mentioned, please consider shopping with my Book Depository affiliate link: http://www.bookdepository.com/?a_aid=simplykelina