Welcome to Litsy!

My TBR for October!! Let's see what I can get finished

"The problem with fairy tales isn‘t that they don‘t exist. It‘s that they do exist, but only for some people."

When Brynn and Mia were younger, they were accused of killing their best friend Summer. They have returned to their hometown to uncover the truth of who actually murdered Summer. What will they uncover?

I‘m a little disappointed by this book because Lauren Oliver is one of my favorites authors. It has a great opening line, but the beginning is slow. The writing is poetic and descriptive, but there were some parts the book could‘ve done without.

This was a great mystery and I always love a distorted Narnia world. 100% recommend to people who like YA and mysteries

I love this so far. Give me all the messed up Narnia like crap you can. Taking something most people recognize as wholesome and just screwing with it is one of my favorite things.

Five years ago Summer was found dead and everyone thinks her two best friends Mia and Brynn did it over their obsession of a book called The Way Into Lovelorn. There was never enough evidence to convict them but in the eyes of their town they were found guilty.
Both girls have been running in their own way since but now a small discovery brings the two former friends back together to find out what happened to their friend 5 years ago.
👇👇👇

I have realised I never shared my son's Xmas book stack (missing is Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, which he is reading). Which would you pick up first? #loveozya

June's bookspin list 6 - 10! 😍 very excited to read the tagged book. She is one of my favorite authors

A broken girl. An Obsession turned deadly.

When Summer is murdered her best friends become the Murders of Brick House Lane. It doesn‘t matter if it's true or not. Brynn commits herself to rehab after rehab to avoid what happened. Mia hides in silence, barely able to speak. When the two reunite, they search for the truth of what happened.

Full review https://www.behindthepages.org/post/broken-things-by-lauren-oliver

Finished this audio while driving into work Friday morning. Everyone thinks Mia and Brynn killed their best friend Summer when they were 13 and their friend Owen was in on it. For the first time in 5 years, they're back together in the same town, and along with two new friends, they band together to find out what really happened the day Summer died.
I have enjoyed this author's books previously. She has a way of hooking you quickly.

This is something I understand now. This is the miracle—of other people, of the whole world, of the mystery of it. That things change. That people grow. That stories can be rewritten over and over, demons recast as heroes, and tragedies as grace. That Owen can never be mine, not really, and that is a good thing, because it means I can truly love him. That love often looks a lot like letting go.

Dr. Leblanc says that hoarding happens when the brain mixes up signals, confuses trash for treasure, makes things meaningful that don‘t have any meaning at all. Maybe it‘s the same for the bad memories we carry, for associations overlaid onto a place or a book or an old story.

“Maybe we were always broken. Maybe I was always a liar, and Mia was always weak. Maybe what happened to Summer didn‘t turn us but only revealed what was already there.”

An enjoyable young adult mystery/thriller - good character development and suspenseful storyline make for a fun read.

“Authors unconsciously write themselves into their books. They transform familiar places into fictional landscapes. It‘s the same way when we picture aliens, we‘ll imagine they‘ll look like us. Psychologists call it transference.”‘

Fan fiction leads to murder.... AGAIN! ☠️😱

Things I liked about it 🙂🙂🙂

🙂 Punchy language
🙂 Story driven
🙂 Exploration of emerging same sex attraction
🙂 Intriguing if undemanding plot
🙂 Believable teenage angst themes

Things that let it down ☹☹☹

☹ Pace got sluggish at points
☹ The hetero relationship got a resolution, the lesbian one did not
☹ Characters seemed too knowing for 12 year olds
☹ Found the 'Lovelorn' aspect a little cheesy

An enjoyable So-So.

I love books that show the complicated messy dynamics between teenage girls. Lauren Oliver tells a story about the intense need to be part of something while also feeling jealousy, loneliness, and obsession.

Starting a new book. Not sure if I'll finish it yet this month or not. We'll see how fast I read it! With the help of my favorite book buddy! 😃😍🐶 #dogsoflitsy

Almost a hundred pages in and not really loving it. So onto the next book! Although I have to say, I love this book cover.

I got this mug for completing a summer reading challenge at my library and I love it!! Happy Saturday!

I am convinced that Lauren Oliver is a literary genius! Her works are powerful and filled with similes and metaphors. This is not the type of book you pick up if you want an easy read. This is the type of book you pick up if you want a challenge. I thought the plot was good over all. And I didn‘t even suspect the real killer!

I really liked this book. I love Oliver‘s writing, as always, so lyrical and evocative. I love outcasts, though I wish their voices had been a little more different from one another. The small town setting is perfectly drawn. The ending I did not see coming at all, though it was a bit anticlimactic. And I definitely could have done without the animal abuse ☹️ 8/10 ⭐️

I feel like this book is a puzzle that I‘m failing to put together as I go along because I‘m too dense or sleep-deprived or something. But I have no idea what‘s going on, which is fun

Apparently I‘m on a thriller/crime kick

@Kaciecalderon this #cupidgoespostal package is so amazing! I love it all! Thank you for such a thoughtful, perfect package! #cgp

@BookishMarginalia

Book 10 of the Popsugar challenge (A book told from multiple characters POV)
I had initially picked one of the heroes of olympus series for this prompt, but I have just read this one as the book of the month from one of the book clubs I‘m in, and found that it‘s narrated from different povs! I liked this book a lot, the only problem was that I felt the writing needed a little more polishing in some parts. :)

I have been in a bit of a reading slump, going back and forth between three or four books, for the past two weeks. I made a trip to Barnes and Noble today and found this 50% off. I've heard good reviews! Hopefully it lives up!

I used to LOVE Lauren Oliver...but I kind-of gave up on her after feeling underwhelmed by more than a few of her books (Rooms, Vanishing Girls, The Spindlers, The Curiosity House).

This one wasn‘t disappointing! It reads like an episode of Law & Order SVU: a dead teen girl; her best friends & boyfriend looking good for the murder.

*Review cont‘d in comments below👇🏻

Oh, I‘m sorry. Did you say you wanted feel-good vibes heading into the New Year? I thought you said (well-written) depressing teen angst & melodrama... My bad. 😆

On Hoarding:

“[My mom] once joked that the Piles were like a personal forest: you could read her age in the size of them.”

Last book of the year! 😵

Despite uncertainty over whether I‘ll find the time to finish this today, I decided to go back to the beginning & reread the 30 pages or so that I‘d already read. It‘s been too long & I don‘t want to forget anything vital, since it‘s a mystery. That‘d be a travesty.

Also, featured: a Christmas gift from my husband. I scored some pretty fantastic mugs this holiday season! ☕️🎄🖤

Which books are you desperately scrambling to finish by the end of the year?

I‘m listening to “The Lady‘s Guide to Petticoats & Piracy” during my hour-long work commute, reading “I Ate the Cosmos for Breakfast” (a book of poems), putting-off “Manhattan Beach” for my December book club meeting, & I started “Broken Things” (a YA Fantasy/Thriller) one day when I forgot the book I was reading at home. Wish me luck! 🤞🏻

#thefinalcountdown

1. Open on Christmas Day
2. Scrooge
3. Reindeer
4. I made gingerbreadmen with the kids in my class a few weeks ago and they loved them. So gingerbread it is!
5. Anyone who fancies doing this!

#tuesdaytidbits #thisorthat @JenlovesJT47

1. Do more research into my holiday plans such as book tickets for tours.
2. Well it is nearly over but I was reading and catching up with friends.
3. I love to eat mince pies (technically not cookies)
4. Started the tagged book
5. I think of you guys have done it!

#friyayintro @howjessreads

Not impressed. I've read a couple other books of Oliver's and was hoo-hum about those too. Nothing special, bland, basic. Could have passed on this one. Was waiting for suspense but it flopped.

I was so impressed with this book. I was so connected to the main characters, that I only casually tried to figure out the ending (and didn't). I also really liked that it was a YA take on the mystery/thriller genre because I feel like that's never done. There were, however, a lot of mature and difficult themes in the book which made it somewhat challenging.

Sneaking in few minutes of reading and snuggling!

I have the day off, so I‘m ignoring important chores & reading, instead. 🙈

I started “Broken Things.” I used to LOVE Lauren Oliver‘s books — but I‘ve been avoiding her for awhile; the last few I‘ve tried have been just ok. Giving her another chance with this one, which reminds me of an episode of Law & Order SVU.

Also, check out the slippers I bought for myself while shopping for the #StuffedStockingSwap. They‘re like weirdly cute clown shoes.

What should I read next?

(It should probably be something quick, as I‘ve yet to start my December book club read...🙈)

Special appearance by Moxie Crimefighter! 🐰📸

They saved me a spot. #buddyandbooks #charliewaffles #dogsoflitsy #somuchdrool

Really enjoyed this book! Such a great writing style, I couldn't figure out who had killed Summer. I was second guessing Brynn and Mia every now and then. She doesn't give anything away until the very end...so good!

5 years ago, Mia, Bryan, & Owen were investigated for the murder of their friend, Summer Marks. Now, hated & reviled by the town, they want to know what really happened.

It would have been 5 stars if the rather graphic reference to animal killing hadn‘t appeared. I didn‘t like the body shaming weight references about Abby either. Rating: 4 🌟

Thanks to NetGalley & publishers, Hodder & Stoughton, for the opportunity to review an ARC.

I spent all of Sept & Oct reading books from my own shelves. #readwhatyouown

Nov & Dec are all about clearing out my library holds! 3 of these were on pause for the past 2 mos, the other 2 jumped into my arms & walked out w/me. Oops! #sorrynotsorry #librarylove

I'm starting to think about what I want my 2019 reading year to look like & part of that is going to be starting the year with a clean library slate. So here we go! #readwhatyouhold

It was okay. Too much build up to a sub par ending. I didn't guess who did it but it also didn't seem very believable either.

It was ok. It‘s pretty easy to fly through it, so it has that going for it. The person who was the killer was unexpected and I‘m not sure if I want to keep this or not.

So far so good

1. Spider donut from Dunkin‘ Donuts
2. Broken Things
3. Going to a book sale on Friday
4. An old Verizon wireless bag
5. Butterfly in the sky, I can go twice as high
#humpdaypost