Blog Tour Review: Batman: Nightwalker

Batman: Nightwalker (DC Icons, #2) by Marie Lu

My Rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5)

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Before he was Batman, he was Bruce Wayne. A reckless boy willing to break the rules for a girl who may be his worst enemy.

The Nightwalkers are terrorizing Gotham City, and Bruce Wayne is next on their list.

One by one, the city’s elites are being executed as their mansions’ security systems turn against them, trapping them like prey. Meanwhile, Bruce is turning eighteen and about to inherit his family’s fortune, not to mention the keys to Wayne Enterprises and all the tech gadgetry his heart could ever desire. But after a run-in with the police, he’s forced to do community service at Arkham Asylum, the infamous prison that holds the city’s most brutal criminals.

Madeleine Wallace is a brilliant killer . . . and Bruce’s only hope.

In Arkham, Bruce meets Madeleine, a brilliant girl with ties to the Nightwalkers. What is she hiding? And why will she speak only to Bruce? Madeleine is the mystery Bruce must unravel. But is he getting her to divulge her secrets, or is he feeding her the information she needs to bring Gotham City to its knees? Bruce will walk the dark line between trust and betrayal as the Nightwalkers circle closer.

First, I just want to put it out there that I am in no way, shape, or form a Batman or any DC or even Marvel superhero fan. Yes, I usually stray away from the depths of the superhero world. So expect that this review will come from someone who has not seen/read a single movie/comic about Batman.

Two kinds of people come out of personal tragedy… You’re the kind that comes out brighter.

Review: Warcross

Warcross by Marie Lu

My Rating: ★★★★★ (5/5)

Synopsis from Goodreads:

For the millions who log in every day, Warcross isn’t just a game—it’s a way of life. The obsession started ten years ago and its fan base now spans the globe, some eager to escape from reality and others hoping to make a profit. Struggling to make ends meet, teenage hacker Emika Chen works as a bounty hunter, tracking down players who bet on the game illegally. But the bounty hunting world is a competitive one, and survival has not been easy. Needing to make some quick cash, Emika takes a risk and hacks into the opening game of the international Warcross Championships—only to accidentally glitch herself into the action and become an overnight sensation.

Convinced she’s going to be arrested, Emika is shocked when instead she gets a call from the game’s creator, the elusive young billionaire Hideo Tanaka, with an irresistible offer. He needs a spy on the inside of this year’s tournament in order to uncover a security problem…and he wants Emika for the job. With no time to lose, Emika’s whisked off to Tokyo and thrust into a world of fame and fortune that she’s only dreamed of. But soon her investigation uncovers a sinister plot, with major consequences for the entire Warcross empire.

I just found my new favorite book. Hands down Warcross is one of the best books of 2017, don’t even hesitate to grab this ASAP because it’S SO AMAZINGGGGGggg.

Review: Genuine Fraud

Genuine Fraud by E. Lockhart

My Rating: ★★★☆☆ (3/5)

Synopsis from Goodreads:

The story of a young woman whose diabolical smarts are her ticket into a charmed life. But how many times can someone reinvent themselves? You be the judge.

Imogen is a runaway heiress, an orphan, a cook, and a cheat.
Jule is a fighter, a social chameleon, and an athlete.
An intense friendship. A disappearance. A murder, or maybe two.
A bad romance, or maybe three.
Blunt objects, disguises, blood, and chocolate. The American dream, superheroes, spies, and villains.
A girl who refuses to give people what they want from her.
A girl who refuses to be the person she once was.

I was genuinely optimistic about reading this book despite not loving We Were Liars. I kinda have a love-hate relationship with the author’s writing style so I was determined to give this a try, and I can say that Genuine Fraud left me shookt.

Review: Just Friends

Just Friends by Tiffany Pitcock

My Rating: ★★☆☆☆ (2/5)

Synopsis from Goodreads:

A new spin on the classic smart-girl-and-bad-boy setup, this witty contemporary romance shows how easily a friendship – even one built on an elaborate lie – can become so much more.

Jenny meets Chance for the very first time when she is assigned as his partner in their Junior Oral Communications class. But after they rescue a doomed assignment with one clever lie, the whole school is suddenly convinced that Little-Miss-Really-Likes-Having-A’s and the most scandalous heartbreaker in school have been best friends forever. It’s amazing how quickly a lie can grow―especially when you really, really want it to be the truth.

With Jenny, Chance can live the normal life he’s always kind of wanted. And with Chance, Jenny can have the exciting teen experiences that TV shows and movies have always promised. Through it all, they hold on to the fact that they are “just friends.” But that might be the biggest lie of all.

Debut author Tiffany Pitcock delivers a spot-on depiction of first love and the high school rumor mill in Just Friends, chosen by readers like you for Macmillan’s young adult imprint Swoon Reads.

What started out as a promising contemporary left me annoyed and frustrated because despite really trying to love it, I just couldn’t. Just Friends is a huge miss for me for a few reasons, read on to find out.

Blog Tour Review: Girl on the Verge [+GIVEAWAY]

Girl on the Verge by Pintip Dunn

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | iBooks

My Rating: ★★★☆☆ (3/5)

Synopsis from Goodreads:

From the author of The Darkest Lie comes a compelling, provocative story for fans of I Was Here and Vanishing Girls, about a high school senior straddling two worlds, unsure how she fits in either—and the journey of self-discovery that leads her to surprising truths.

In her small Kansas town, at her predominantly white school, Kanchana doesn’t look like anyone else. But at home, her Thai grandmother chides her for being too westernized. Only through the clothing Kan designs in secret can she find a way to fuse both cultures into something distinctly her own.

When her mother agrees to provide a home for a teenage girl named Shelly, Kan sees a chance to prove herself useful. Making Shelly feel comfortable is easy at first—her new friend is eager to please, embraces the family’s Thai traditions, and clearly looks up to Kan. Perhaps too much. Shelly seems to want everything Kanchana has, even the blond, blue-eyed boy she has a crush on. As Kan’s growing discomfort compels her to investigate Shelly’s past, she’s shocked to find how much it intersects with her own—and just how far Shelly will go to belong…

I signed-up for this book tour simply because it’s an #ownvoices and I thought that it’ll be a nice contemporary to read. Well I was wrong because this is actually a thriller so it had this creepy vibe all throughout that had me…on the verge.

Review: I Believe in a Thing Called Love

I Believe in a Thing Called Love by Maurene Goo

My Rating: ★★★★★ (5/5)

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Desi Lee knows how carburetors work. She learned CPR at the age of five. As a high school senior, she has never missed a day of school and has never had a B in her entire life. She’s for sure going to 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 her answer 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 Rules for True Love,” Desi goes after the moody, elusive artist Luca Drakos—and boat rescues, love triangles, and fake 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.

I gave this book 5 stars and I would give it all the finger-hearts if I could! THIS BOOK IS EVERYTHING. I DON’T EVEN KNOW WHERE TO START BUT OMG YOU JUST NEED TO GET YOUR HANDS ON THIS BOOK ASAP. Okay, so I’ll try my best to write a coherent review for this. (But I really wish I could just shout at you to read this book until you do haha)

Review: Girl Out of Water

Girl Out of Water by Laura Silverman

My Rating: ★★★☆☆ (3/5)

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Anise Sawyer plans to spend every minute of summer with her friends: surfing, chowing down on fish tacos drizzled with wasabi balsamic vinegar, and throwing bonfires that blaze until dawn. But when a serious car wreck leaves her aunt, a single mother of three, with two broken legs, it forces Anise to say goodbye for the first time to Santa Cruz, the waves, her friends, and even a kindling romance, and fly with her dad to Nebraska for the entire summer. Living in Nebraska isn’t easy. Anise spends her days caring for her three younger cousins in the childhood home of her runaway mom, a wild figure who’s been flickering in and out of her life since birth, appearing for weeks at a time and then disappearing again for months, or even years, without a word.

Complicating matters is Lincoln, a one-armed, charismatic skater who pushes Anise to trade her surfboard for a skateboard. As Anise draws closer to Lincoln and takes on the full burden and joy of her cousins, she loses touch with her friends back home – leading her to one terrifying question: will she turn out just like her mom and spend her life leaving behind the ones she loves

I feel kind of shy going into this review because I know a lot of people really loved it. Well I didn’t hate it and I enjoyed parts of it but overall, it’s an okay book for me. It has a great concept with interesting characters.

Genie Shares: Killing the Request Button on Netgalley

(I’m bringing this back! Genie Shares is a feature of mine where I share some “personal book-related” stories, if you want to read my past posts just click here. But I decided to use this feature not only for sharing stories but also for discussing or just writing about any book and blog related topics that is important to me at the moment.)

It all begins when we pay a visit to Netgalley, either we’ll just submit a review/feedback or will casually look at the new releases. And then next we know is that we’ve already requested for like 38083438 books. I don’t know about you, but this happens to me ALL THE TIME.

Review: The Upside of Unrequited

The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli

My Rating: ★★★★★ (5/5)

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Seventeen-year-old Molly Peskin-Suso knows all about unrequited love-she’s lived through it twenty-six times. She crushes hard and crushes often, but always in secret. Because no matter how many times her twin sister, Cassie, tells her to woman up, Molly can’t stomach the idea of rejection. So she’s careful. Fat girls always have to be careful.

Then a cute new girl enters Cassie’s orbit, and for the first time ever, Molly’s cynical twin is a lovesick mess. Meanwhile, Molly’s totally not dying of loneliness-except for the part where she is. Luckily, Cassie’s new girlfriend comes with a cute hipster-boy sidekick. Will is funny, flirtatious, and just might be perfect crush material. Maybe more than crush material. And if Molly can win him over, she’ll get her first kiss and she’ll get her twin back.

There’s only one problem: Molly’s coworker, Reid. He’s an awkward Tolkien superfan, and there’s absolutely no way Molly could fall for him. Right?

I just want to throw all the heart-eyed emojis to this book because IT’S SO ADORABLE AND THE FEELS ARE #REAL. Though I liked Simon just a bit more compared to do this because of the whole crew and oreos and geeky and cute stuff there but this book still lived up to the author’s debut! It’s like the best friend that understands and will feed you cookie-dough to heal all your unrequited feelings.

Book Haul: February & March 2017

Hey there! ✨

YAAAAAS, this is my first and hopefully not the last book haul post! I don’t usually “haul” books because I don’t have the money to do that (I buy an average of 2-3 books a month) but now—I’m really not sure how but—I collected 13 books!