A Kiss in the Dark by Gina Ciocca Published by Simon and Schuster on March 6, 2018
Genres: Young Adult Fiction, Romance, Contemporary, Social Themes, Friendship, Dating & Sex
Pages: 352
Format: eARC
Source: Netgalley
Buy on Amazon
Goodreads
After being kissed by a mystery guy when the lights go out during a football game, Macy is determined to figure out which of three possible boys is the culprit in this funny, poignant, and achingly romantic novel from the author of Last Year’s Mistake.
When the lights go out at a Georgia high school football game, senior Macy Atwood finds herself in the arms of a boy who kisses her senseless—but he’s gone by the time the lights come back on. All she knows is that there was something special—and oddly familiar—about her mystery kisser.
Noah Granger, Ridgedale’s resident bad boy and newest transfer student, has no problem taking credit for the kiss, but Macy can’t shake the feeling that he’s lying. Especially since a photograph of Macy and former star football player Joel Hargrove resurfaced online moments before the blackout, a not-so-random reminder of how hard she fell for Joel last year. And how doing so ultimately sent her lifelong friendships with Meredith Kopala and Ben Collins up in literal smoke.
Soon last year’s wounds begin to reopen as Macy realizes the events that unfolded during junior year are somehow tied to her mystery kisser.
But the closer Macy gets to figuring it all out, the more she starts to worry that the boy who kissed her in the dark and the boy who is stealing her heart might be two very different people.
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
My Thoughts:
The cover is really cute and the premise sounds fun and adorable. Unfortunately this one completely missed the mark for me and I really struggled to finish the book. There are two timelines, junior year and senior year, that alternate through out the book. Something happened junior year that screwed up Macy’s friendships and the alternating timelines are supposed to reveal the story. Unfortunately… both timelines came off really dull to me — both are wholly encompassed by homecoming so as we go back and forth, it’s just a whole lot of homecoming drama. But the drama wasn’t even that interesting? I just felt my attention waning. There were like three boys in the picture and it was just one too many boys for me for the majority of the book. I felt like the plot dragged and despite liking the ending, the amount of plodding it took to get there was not worth it for me. I’m sad I didn’t enjoy this more but I really tried.
In Short…
This one didn’t do it for me but if you like cute YA contemporaries, I’d be remiss if I didn’t tell you to give it a shot, especially given the friends I have that did enjoy it quite a bit!
American Panda by Gloria Chao Published by Simon and Schuster on February 6, 2018
Genres: Young Adult Fiction, Diversity & Multicultural, Humorous, General, People & Places, United States, Asian American
Pages: 320
Format: eBook
Source: Library
Buy on Amazon
Goodreads
At seventeen, Mei should be in high school, but skipping fourth grade was part of her parents’ master plan. Now a freshman at MIT, she is on track to fulfill the rest of this predetermined future: become a doctor, marry a preapproved Taiwanese Ivy Leaguer, produce a litter of babies.
With everything her parents have sacrificed to make her cushy life a reality, Mei can’t bring herself to tell them the truth—that she (1) hates germs, (2) falls asleep in biology lectures, and (3) has a crush on her classmate Darren Takahashi, who is decidedly not Taiwanese.
But when Mei reconnects with her brother, Xing, who is estranged from the family for dating the wrong woman, Mei starts to wonder if all the secrets are truly worth it. Can she find a way to be herself, whoever that is, before her web of lies unravels?
From debut author Gloria Chao comes a hilarious, heartfelt tale of how unlike the panda, life isn’t always so black and white.
My Thoughts:
American Panda is a book that I so wish was around for teen me! There aren’t a lot of books out there focusing on what it’s like growing up in an Asian American household. I related to a LOT of things in this book and to Mei. Granted, there are some extremes here that my parents weren’t like but of course each Asian American kid’s experience is slightly different. I like that this book is out there for all those other Asian kids growing up because it makes you feel not quite so isolated. It’s hard to describe growing up and trying to pretend you know all the pop culture stuff that all the other kids at school know. I didn’t know about sports. I didn’t know about music. I smiled and pretended a LOT as a child because I didn’t want to be weird. I didn’t go to a lot of things because my mom did not/could not drive me. Playing with friends time could never be excessive because weekends are for staying home and studying. This book and me? I GET IT.
The downside of relating so much is that this book actually made me really anxious because of Mei’s nagging mom — it struck a little too close to home perhaps because hello flashbacks! I’d start to get anxious and agitated — here is where I disagree with that line in the synopsis about this being a “laugh out loud” story. No, this is entirely more of a serious contemporary, in my opinion. I also got frustrated a few times with Mei because I, personally, was a way more assertive person than Mei so I wanted her to just SAY NO to her parents so many times. Of course this is part of her character arc so I get it, but once again, it made me a little anxious.
In Short…
I really appreciated this book. It really shines a light on cultural differences and those of us dual culture kids that have juggled both will really relate. I think it’s an important coming of age book and I really enjoyed it! I did not think this was a light hearted comedy though, so keep that in mind!
I Believe in a Thing Called Love by Maurene Goo on May 30, 2017
Pages: 336
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
Buy on Amazon
Goodreads
Desi Lee believes anything is possible if you have a plan. That’s how she became student body president. Varsity soccer star. And it’s how she’ll get into Stanford. But—she’s never had a boyfriend. In fact, she’s a disaster in romance, a clumsy, stammering humiliation magnet whose botched attempts at flirting have become legendary with her friends. So when the hottest human specimen to have ever lived walks into her life one day, Desi decides to tackle her flirting failures with the same zest she’s applied to everything else in her life. She finds guidance in the Korean dramas her father has been obsessively watching for years—where the hapless heroine always seems to end up in the arms of her true love by episode ten. It’s a simple formula, and Desi is a quick study. Armed with her “K Drama Steps to True Love,” Desi goes after the moody, elusive artist Luca Drakos—and boat rescues, love triangles, and staged car crashes ensue. But when the fun and games turn to true feels, Desi finds out that real love is about way more than just drama.
My Thoughts:
Yay for another YA father-daughter relationship that I love! Desi and her dad’s closeness was probably one of my favorite things about I Believe In A Thing Called Love. I love it when there are great parental relationships in YA and this is a prime example! They’ve really come to rely on each other. They confide in one another and I love their nights watching K-dramas!
The story is super cute — Desi is good at everything, a straight A student, over achiever, type A personality person. But she cannot handle romance. So she makes an outline based on K-drama romance formulas and uses this on her crush. The story is really cute and I liked Desi a lot. There were some parts of her plan though that I felt got out of hand. So that detracted from my enjoyment a bit but the friendships, funny moments and father-daughter relationship made up for it. Not to mention, this book made me want to get into K-dramas!
In Short…
A cute contemporary that will get you in the mood for summer and also make you want to watch K-dramas if you don’t already!
Leave a Reply