Tag: stephanie perkins

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Book Reviews contemporary horror thriller ya fiction

There’s Someone Inside Your House – Book Review

Title: There’s Someone Inside Your House

Author: Stephanie Perkins

Pages: 289 (hardcover)

Genre: YA, Horror, Contemporary

Publisher: Dutton Books

Published: September 26, 2017

Summary:

Over a year after her parents sent her away from Hawaii to live with her grandmother in landlocked Nebraska, Makani Young is still adjusting to her new life. She’s made a small group of close friends and even flirted with romance, but her past in Hawaii is still hard to forget. And then . . . one by one the students of her new high school begin to die in a series of gruesome murders. Makani doesn’t know who’s next on the list. Between this, and a secret scorching relationship with the school weirdo, this school year may turn out to be one to die for . . . literally.

Review:

 

Oh my goodness. Where do I begin with this book?

I really enjoyed this book. I’m not usually the type who likes scary things. I hate horror for the sake of horror (i.e. movies that make you jump just to scare the pants off of you), and I think of myself as more of a thriller kind of girl. So I’ll admit I was a bit hesitant about reading There’s Someone Inside Your House. But, seeing as though I’ve always loved Stephanie Perkins’ books, I decided that I was going to read this one regardless of my initial thoughts. I’m glad I did.

This book got right into the action in the first chapter, which I loved! There’s nothing worse than a book that drags on with a slow burn. Also, I definitely was not terrified by this book. It has some great horror elements, but it didn’t keep me up at night. That being said, there was one evening where I was reading this book rather late in the night, with all of the lights out (it was an e-ARC), and I heard some noises in my house, which set my heart pounding. I later found out it was my mom doing some weird things in the house, but boy, was I a little nervous. I even got up to double-check the house for anything suspicious.

I think if you go into this book expecting a full-on horror novel, you will be disappointed. But if you keep in mind that Stephanie Perkins is a contemporary writer, I think you will be very happy with this book. There’s plenty of romance within this book to appease those who want more of Perkins’ swoon boys, but it doesn’t feel like it’s too much for the genre. That’s not to say that there isn’t a lot of intrigue and mystery going on surrounding the killer.

I gave There’s Someone Inside Your House 4/5 stars.

*I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.*

 

Categories
Book Reviews contemporary romance ya fiction

Anna and the French Kiss – Book Review

Title: Anna and the French Kiss

Author: Stephanie Perkins

Pages: 372 (paperback)

Genre: YA, Contemporary, Romance

Publisher: Speak

Published: December 2, 2010

Summary:

Can Anna find love in the City of Light?

Anna is happy in Atlanta. She has a loyal best friend and a crush on her coworker at the movie theater, who is just starting to return her affection. So she’s less than thrilled when her father decides to send her to a boarding school in Paris for her senior year.

But despite not speaking a word of French, Anna meets some cool new people, including the handsome Étienne St. Clair, who quickly becomes her best friend. Unfortunately, he’s taken —and Anna might be, too. Will a year of romantic near misses end with the French kiss she’s waiting for?

Review:

This is one of my favorite contemporaries that I’ve read so far. I first read it last summer, and I just picked it up for the second time last week. I absolutely love contemporary books, and the mushier they are, the better. There’s just something about a great contemporary read that gets me in the mood for summer, and this is one of the best that I’ve read.

I first picked this book up because it takes place in Paris, and I was feeling a bit nostalgic about the time I had spent there in 2012. Not being able to travel pack to Paris, I decided to do the next best thing and pick up a book set in Paris, and I wasn’t disappointed. Anna spends her senior year of high school at a school for Americans in Paris. At first, she is very upset that she has to go, because she doesn’t want to leave her best friend and her crush behind, but Anna quickly warms up to Paris, and finds some amazing friends.

I think that the friendships in this book are stunning. No matter what happens between these characters, they are always there for one another. And there is quite a bit of drama that goes on in the group. But I mean, it’s high school, so it’s completely understandable. Through thick and thin, highs and lows, these characters are there for one another, even when they haven’t been the best of friends to one another. And I think that’s really important.

The romantic tension in Anna and the French Kiss is intense! There were so many instances where I wanted to yell at the characters that they just needed to OPEN THEIR EYES to see what was so clearly in front of them, but they were just too afraid to see things for what they really are. And I totally get it. I, too, am afraid of doing things that may seem scary, so I understand why these characters don’t want to admit their feelings. Don’t want to stand up to their parents. Don’t want to cause any conflict. I get it all, and I can relate to it on a really personal level, which is just another one of the reasons why I give Anna and the French Kiss 5/5 stars.

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Book Reviews

2016 Popsugar Reading Challenge May Update

So it has been quite a while since I originally posted the reading challenge that I am aiming to complete this year, and while I would like to overwhelm you with the number of books that I have finished off of the list, that is simply not the case. With that being said, I have some very lofty summer reading goals, as this semester of college is almost over and I will soon have three months to devote to reading. So I have planned out a lot of the books that I will be using to fulfill many of the categories on the reading challenge, without using a single book to count for multiple categories. So here’s where I am so far:

2016 Popsugar Reading Challenge

What I’ve finished:

  • A YA bestseller: The Glittering Court by Richelle Mead
  • A romance set in the future: These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner
  • A book that’s more than 600 pages: Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas
  • A book that is published in 2016: The Truth by Jeffry W. Johnston
  • A dystopian novel: Breaking Sky by Cori McCarthy

So out of the 40 categories on the list, I have completed 5, or 12.5% of the list. Not so great, but I’m hopeful that I will come much closer to finishing the list over the summer, as I have planned to read many books. Here are the categories that I hope to tackle during June, July, and August:

  • A book based on a fairy tale: A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas
  • A book you haven’t read since high school: Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
  • A book set in Europe: Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
  • A New York Times bestseller: Looking for Alaska by John Green
  • A book that’s becoming a movie this year: The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey
  • A science-fiction novel: Legend by Marie Lu
  • A book recommended by a family member: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
  • A book with a protagonist who has your occupation: Famous Last Words by Jennifer Salvato Doktorski
  • A book about a road trip: Paper Towns by John Green
  • A book that takes place on an island: The End by Lemony Snicket
  • A book that’s guaranteed to bring you joy: Harry Potter (I haven’t decided which one yet!) by J.K. Rowling

If I am able to complete all of these over the summer, which I have no doubt I will, that will bring my total up to 16/40, or 40% of the way through the list. I hope to get to more than just this, but this will be my starting point as I still have other books that I would like to read over the summer, like the entire A Series of Unfortunate Events series.

I will post updates at the end of each month (May, June, July) as to what I have accomplished and if I have found any more books to complete other categories. If you have any recommendations of books that I should read, please let me know in the comments!