Book Review: The Program by Suzanne Young

The Program by Suzanne Young
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Publish Date: April 30, 2013
Hardcover, 416 pages
ISBN: 9781442445802



My Review:


Wow, I knew I wanted to read this book but I didn't realize just how good it was going to be until I read it. The Program was amazing to me. Everything I wanted in a dystopian, and while some of it reads similar to other dystopians out there, there is a lot that is different and fresh about this book as well and that is what drew me in and kept me reading!

Sloane and James are in love but worried about the sickness that can land them in the program. Life as a teenager in the normal world is stressful enough. But in the world that Suzanne Young has created, there is so much more to worry about. What happens when you go in The Program and why don't you have any memories when you come out. James and Sloane are determined to not get "the sickness" or at least not get caught with it. But when all good intentions fall aside what do you do with the hand that life deals you? Well Sloane is a smart cookie and I love that about her. Yes she is dependent on James, but when the cards are down, she really comes into her own.

The first part of the book gives the back story and what is happening in the now up until the breaking point. Then the story is broken up into two more parts, one being The Program and the other (I can't remember the actual title) but it's the time after The Program. I won't go into details to keep this spoiler free, but let me just say that once this story gets rolling and I found myself invested in the characters and interested in the world I could not put the book down. It also read very fast. I think I sped through 200 pages in no time at all. It's just that interesting.

I've read The Hunger Games, I've read the Crossed trilogy, and while I see shades of similar dystopian features here (it's like all types of books, there are similar formulas), the formula is where it stops. The Program is a very original story. Centered around an outbreak of teen suicide and what the government is doing to try and stop it. Once it again it shows the lengths some people will go to to control people (it's not a political statement, it's very generic in the book). It's scary and fascinating at the same time and I found myself pulling for Sloane through the whole book. She has spunk and love. And I love that about her.

Are you looking for the next great YA dystopian or just a quick summer read? The Program is it. From the way it ends I am guessing it's part of a series and must admit I did not do my homework here. If it is I am looking forward to the next book. But don't worry, it's not a huge cliffhanger that will leave you miserable, just teased for the next book. With tight writing and engaging characters this may just be one of my favorite books of the year. I can't say enough how much I loved this one and can't wait to read the next in the series (if it is a series, oh please tell me it's a series!)


My rating: 5.0/5.0

About the Book:
Sloane knows better than to cry in front of anyone. With suicide now an international epidemic, one outburst could land her in The Program, the only proven course of treatment. Sloane’s parents have already lost one child; Sloane knows they’ll do anything to keep her alive. She also knows that everyone who’s been through The Program returns as a blank slate. Because their depression is gone—but so are their memories.

Under constant surveillance at home and at school, Sloane puts on a brave face and keeps her feelings buried as deep as she can. The only person Sloane can be herself with is James. He’s promised to keep them both safe and out of treatment, and Sloane knows their love is strong enough to withstand anything. But despite the promises they made to each other, it’s getting harder to hide the truth. They are both growing weaker. Depression is setting in. And The Program is coming for them.

About the Author:
Suzanne Young currently lives in Tempe, Arizona where she teaches high school English and obsesses about books. She's the author of A NEED SO BEAUTIFUL, A WANT SO WICKED, and THE PROGRAM. 

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***I received this book through Amazon Vine for an honest review.  I was not compensated in any other way except receiving the book for free.  ***

Descendent Blog Tour - Excerpt #3 & Giveaway

 

Descendant blog tour excerpt 3 -

About DESCENDANT: 

Seventeen-year-old Abigail Johnson is Gifted.

Blessed-or cursed-with Sight and Healing, Abby lives an unsettled life, moving from place to place and staying one step ahead of the darkness that hunts her. When she arrives in Jackson, Wyoming, she is desperate to maintain the illusion of normalcy, but she is plagued with visions of past lives mixed with frightening glimpses of her future. Then she meets Kye, a mysterious boy who seems so achingly familiar that Abby is drawn to him like he's a missing piece of her own soul.

Before Abby can discover the reason for her feelings toward Kye, the darkness catches up to her and she is forced to flee again. But this time she's not just running. She is fighting back with Kye at her side, and it's not only Abby's life at stake.

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Praise for DESCENDANT: "A hot new spin on paranormal, Descendant is refreshingly imaginative and powerful. I can't decide which was best -- piecing together Abby's sinister past or keeping up with her heartbreaking future. If you like your YA laced with melt-my-heart romance and a good helping of heart-pounding suspense, you'll love this book!" -- Michelle Davidson Argyle, author of The Breakaway

"Nichole Giles has crafted a story that breathes from the pages. Her characters are authentic, the action intense, with powerful emotions that will keep Descendant on your mind long after the book ends. Open your eyes to another facet of our world in Descendant and you'll be sucked into an adventure with Abby and Kye, that will explore the power of gifts, courage, and love. With top-notch writing, Giles has crafted a story that breathes from the pages." --Rachelle J. Christensen, award-winning author of Wrong Number and Caller ID

"Nichole Giles brings a fresh new voice and flawless writing technique to the world of Young Adult fiction. I was swept away to another place and never wanted to come back." --Tristi Pinkston, author of Turning Pages and the Secret Sisters mystery series

"This debut novel delivers in all the right ways, with heart-pounding action and a delicious romance that sweeps centuries. I loved it!" --Elana Johnson, author of Possession and Surrender

About Nichole Giles: Nichole Giles was born in Nevada, and moved with her parents to a number of cities in and around the West. Writing is her passion, but she also loves to spend time with her husband and four children, travel to tropical and exotic destinations, drive in the rain with the convertible top down, and play music at full volume so she can sing along.   

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Book Review: Gorgeous by Paul Rudnick

Gorgeous by Paul Rudnick
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Publish Date: April 30, 2013
Hardcover, 327 pages
ISBN: 9780545464260
Young Adult


My Review:
I wasn't sure what I was going to think of Gorgeous going in, but I was fascinated by the premise. In the end and through the journey of the book I am really glad I read it. It's a fast-paced read that presents an interesting look at beauty and love in our society today.

The book starts off with Becky's Mom's death and moves quickly to Becky accepting the plane ticket to New York to meet Tom Kelly and start off her year of becoming the most beautiful woman in the world. Becky is really unsure how this will work, but miraculously it does with Tom Kelly at her side. I like how Becky's feelings about things while not explained all at once, are revealed through the whole book, truly developing her as a character especially as she grows and changes. She was a fascinating character who goes through some tough trials and tribulations after some really big highs so to become who she does it is really a testament to her character and I like that. And the fun part is Rocher, her best friend who can always inject some sarcasm, reality and wit is right there with her most of the time. Rocher is an amazing addition to the book. She doesn't take away from Becky but really adds that right amount of realistic best friend.

The plot moves quickly through Rebecca's year and then the time after, but I felt things were covered well and my interest level was kept high once I got into the book. Character development really moved the book forward but there are several key events that make the plot. There are life lessons to be learned and even more as I think about it as I write up this review just a few days after finishing the book. There is a lot of pop culture and even references to stars/popular people that while they have different names you will immediately associate them with someone important. I enjoyed that aspect of the book and the people that Mr. Rudnick intentionally (or unintentionally) references are iconic and timeless so whether you read this book now or ten years from now I feel these people will still be relevant.

I think Gorgeous was an amazing book. One word of warning to parents, there is strong language in the book, but other than that, I think the meaning of the book outweighs the language. The meaning that comes through is really amazing when you sit and ruminate on it. The thoughts about beauty being only part of the equation, not really doing anything to get the limelight (just being gorgeous) and possibly doing more once you get the limelight really resonated with me. I think if more people were like Becky the world could be a better place, even ordinary people who don't have the ears of politicians, royals or movie stars. Kudos to Mr. Rudnick for an entertaining and thought-provoking book!

About the Book:
Inner beauty wants out.

When eighteen-year-old Becky Randle’s mother dies, she’s summoned from her Missouri trailer park to meet Tom Kelly, the world’s top designer. He makes her an impossible offer: He’ll create three dresses to transform Becky from a nothing special girl into the most beautiful woman who ever lived.

Becky thinks Tom is a lunatic, or that he’s producing a hidden camera show called World’s Most Gullible Poor People. But she accepts, and she’s remade as Rebecca. When Becky looks in the mirror, she sees herself – an awkward mess of split ends and cankles. But when anyone else looks at Becky, they see pure five-alarm hotness.

Soon Rebecca is on the cover of Vogue, the new Hollywood darling, and dating celebrities. Then Becky meets Prince Gregory, heir to the British throne, and everything starts to crumble. Because Rebecca aside, Becky loves him. But to love her back, Gregory would have to look past the blinding Rebecca to see the real girl inside. And Becky knows there’s not enough magic in the world.

A screamingly defiant, hugely naughty, and impossibly fun free fall past the cat walks, the red carpets, and even the halls of Buckingham Palace, Gorgeous does the impossible: It makes you see yourself clearly for the first time.

About the Author (from Goodreads.com):
Paul M. Rudnick is an American playwright, screenwriter and novelist. His plays include I Hate Hamlet, Jeffrey, The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told, Valhalla and The New Century. He also wrote for Premiere magazine under the pseudonym Libby Gelman-Waxner. He is openly gay.
 

***I received this book from the publisher for an honest review.  I was not compensated in any other way except receiving the book for free.  ***

Cover Reveal: His Risk to Take by Tessa Bailey

Today's Cover Reveal is from Entangled Publishing's Brazen Everafter line and oh boy is it hot!  I know I want this book just from cover alone. But first check out the synopsis, because it will tease you and make you want the book even more.  And then if all of that isn't enough to wet your appetite for this book, make sure you enter the cover reveal giveaway for a $50 Amazon GC at the bottom of the post!  Thanks Entangled for the great giveaway!


Synopsis:
The greater the risk, the hotter the reward?

Homicide cop Troy Bennett had a reputation on the Chicago PD for being fearless and in control?until the night his daredevil partner is killed during a raid. From that moment on, he swears he?ll never again be responsible for the loss of a loved one. To escape his demons, Troy transfers to the NYPD, bringing him up close and personal with Ruby Elliott, a beautiful, street-savvy pool hustler.

Reckless and stubbornly independent, Ruby embodies everything Troy?s avoiding, but when she walks into O?Hanlon?s Pub and blows his carefully laid plans to hell, Troy knows he has to have her?risks be damned. But there?s a connection between Ruby?s shadowed past and a case Troy?s working involving a notorious Brooklyn felon, throwing her safety into jeopardy. Confronted with his biggest fear, will Troy push Ruby away to keep her safe or fight to keep her in his arms where she belongs?

And now for the cover . . .

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Book Review: And Then I Found You by Patti Callahan Henry

And Then I Found You: A Novel by Patti Callahan Henry
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Publish Date: April 9, 2013
Hardcover, 261 pages
ISBN: 9780312610760


My Review
I really enjoyed And The I Found You. I loved that it had a back story that was real, yet the story was fiction. That's the first thing that stood out for me and intrigued me and made me say I wanted to review this book and I am so glad I did.

I have to say normally a character like Kate would irritate me. Waffling back and forth, so emotional, yet not emotional. She is definitely not a character I normally can connect with. Yet in And Then I Found You I did connect with her completely. I think Patti Callahan Henry did a magnificent job fleshing out the character of Kate slowly so the reader understands her and empathizes with her and her situation of being stuck and unable to move forward until she closes the chapter of her life that she has left open. And at that point I was so engrossed in the novel I could not put it down. I also enjoyed Kate's family and their love and total support yet they acted like a normal family. And Rowan and Jack are very interesting men to add to Kate's life. At times I wasn't sure who to pull for, but then the pull became obvious at least for me (and I'm not telling).

The plot moves quickly, first moving back and forth from present and past to tell Kate's story so we understand what happened and why she did what she did and how she has gotten to where she is. Flashbacks continue to share more insight and I really like that. But the real story is in the present and the decisions that Kate, Rowan and Jack have to make now. It's a fascinating character study rolled into a fast-paced novel.

I honestly never thought I could read this emotional of a novel that quickly (pretty much in one afternoon) but I did. The pacing of the author was such that I could not put the book down and while it was extremely emotional, I never felt overwrought by the emotions which was good for me, I don't really like to get bogged down with emotions with every book, though I had prepared myself with this one. And Then I Found You is a wonderful book and will make a wonderful beach read or a great spring/summer read. It's fast-paced, character-centered and wonderfully emotional. I am now anxious to read more of Patti's books.

My rating: 5.0/5.0

About the Book
Kate Vaughan is no stranger to tough choices.

She’s made them before. Now it’s time to do it again.

Kate has a secret, something tucked away in her past. And she’s getting on with her life.  Her business is thriving. She has a strong relationship with her family, and a devoted boyfriend whom she wants to love with all her heart. If Kate had ever made a list, Rowan would fill the imagined boxes of a perfect mate. But she wants more than the perfect on paper relationship; she wants a real and imperfect love. That's why, when Kate discovers the small velvet box hidden in Rowan's drawer, she panics.

It always happens this way. Just when Kate thinks she can love, just when she believes she can conquer the fear, she’s filled with dread. And she wants more than anything to make this feeling go away. But how?

When the mistakes have been made and the running is over, it’s time to face the truth. Kate knows this. She understands that a woman can never undo what can never be undone. Yet, for the first time in her life she also knows that she won’t fully love until she confronts those from her past. It’s time to act.

Can she do it? Can she travel to the place where it all began, to the one who shares her secret? Can the lost ever become found?

And Then I Found You gives new life to the phrase “inspired by a true story.” By travelling back to a painful time in her own family’s history, the author explores the limits of courage, and the price of a selfless act.

About the Author (from Goodreads)
Patti Callahan Henry is the National Bestselling author of six novels with Penguin/NAL (Losing the Moon, Where the River Runs, When Light Breaks, Betweeen the Tides, The Art of Keeping Secrets, and Driftwood Summer).

Patti is hailed as a fresh new voice in southern fiction. She has been short-listed for the Townsend Prize for Fiction and has been nominated for the Southeastern Independent Booksellers Fiction Novel of the Year. She is a frequent speaker at luncheons, book clubs and women’s groups where she discusses the importance of storytelling and anything else they want to talk about.

Patti grew up as a Minister’s daughter, learning early how storytelling effects our lives. She grew up spending her summers on Cape Cod where she began her love affair with the beach, ocean, tides and nature of the coast. Moving south at the tender age of twelve, she found solace in books and stories. While attending Auburn University, she met a southern boy who later proposed on Daufuskie Island, South Carolina, next to a historic lighthouse overlooking the Sound. After earning her Master’s degree in Child Health, Patti worked as a Clinical Nurse Specialist until her first child was born.

Patti is a full time writer, wife and mother living with her husband and three children outside Atlanta on the Chattahoochee River where she is working on her next novel.

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***I received this book from the publisher for an honest review.  I was not compensated in any other way except receiving the book for free.  ***

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Book Review: Until the End of Time by Danielle Steel

Until the End of Time: A Novel by Danielle Steel
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Pub Date: Jan. 29, 2013
Hardcover, 336 pages
ISBN: 9780345530882




My Review:
It's been at least a few years since I've picked up a Danielle Steel though I use to read her voraciously when I was a teenager. Somehow Until the End of Time's blurb appealed to me and I reserved it from the library.

Again I will remind my readers I read for pure pleasure, not to deconstruct sentence structure or how the writer writes. All I really want is a good story, however if a writer can't hold my interest I can't read the story. So with that in mind I will move forward with my review. I know a lot of people don't like Danielle Steel, but she holds a special place in my heart as one of the first novelists I read. No her newer stories aren't quite like the sweeping stories of old, but I still see some of the old Danielle Steel in her books.

Until the End of Time took a little to get into. The reading was just a little stilted at the beginning of each story in the book (it is divided into two separate yet connected love stories). But I felt like once she got into her rhythm, Ms. Steel really began to shine and I fell into the stories then. This is not a complex book, but after reading a few more complex young adult novels I think this is just what I needed. An easy breezy adult pleasure novel. Love stories pure and simple. And while they are very emotional and deal with sensitive subjects, I never felt too bogged down. I kept flipping the pages to find out what would happen next. I connected with the characters, I felt their joy and their pain. And I enjoyed the plot. I read most of the book in one sitting as well. Yes, that is the Danielle Steel I remember. Getting swept away into the story, losing track of time and just enjoying the read. I did that last night and enjoyed it. I won't apologize for my guilty pleasure. Was it the best book ever? No. Was it enjoyable for the moment? Yes. Simple enough. Go forth and read it if you want, feel free to ignore me to on this one if you want as well. We all have our guilty pleasures and we all should enjoy them :)

Have a great day! And Mitchell Fulcher, I will love you until the end of time . . .

My rating: 4.0/5.0

About the Book:
Two couples, four decades apart. One believes that if lovers die, they find each other again in another life. Or perhaps they wind up as stars side by side in the sky, together forever. Who knows how it really ends? Danielle Steel breaks new ground in her career as a perennial New York Times bestseller with the poignant story of two parallel destinies, and the kind of love we all hope will be everlasting.

UNTIL THE END OF TIME

Bill, a dedicated young lawyer working at his family’s prestigious New York firm, leaves everything he trained for to follow his dream and become a minister in rural Wyoming. Jenny, his wife, is a stylist whose heart and soul are invested in fashion. She leaves the milieu and life she loves to join him. The certainty they share is that their destinies are linked forever.

Fast forward thirty-eight years. Robert is a hardworking independent book publisher in Manhattan who has given up all personal life to build his struggling business. He is looking for one big hit novel to publish. Lillibet is a young Amish woman, living as though in the seventeenth century, caring for her widowed father and three young brothers on their family farm. In secret at night, by candlelight, she has written the novel that burns within her, and gets it into Robert’s hands, wrapped in her hand-stitched apron. He falls in love first with the book, and then with the woman he has never met, living in the sequestered world of the Amish—a world without telephones, computers, electricity, modern conveniences, or cars. Although Lillibet faces banishment from her family and community, she embraces the opportunity to publish her novel, and is irresistibly drawn to the man who has heard her voice. Destiny is at work here. Fate draws her from her horse-and-buggy life toward his, and the publication of her novel.

In the hands of master storyteller Danielle Steel, these two remarkable relationships come together in unexpected and surprising ways, as lovers are lost, and find each other again. If it is true that real love lasts forever and lovers cannot lose each other, then Until the End of Time will not only comfort and fascinate us, as destiny does her dance, but it will give us hope as well. Love and fate are powerful, irresistible forces, as Steel proves to us here, in a book about courage, change, risk, and hope . . . and love that never dies.

About the Author (from Goodreads):
Since 1981, Ms. Steel has been a permanent fixture on the New York Times hardcover and paperback bestseller lists. In 1989, she was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records for having at least one of her books on the Times bestseller list for 381 consecutive weeks. But Guinness was premature. The fact is that one or more of Ms. Steel's novels have been on the New York Times bestseller list for over 390 consecutive weeks.

From an education in New York and Europe to a professional background in public relations and advertising, and teaching, Ms. Steel moved on quickly to her literary career and has been hard at work writing ever since. She wrote her first book at nineteen. Often, she works on five books at a time — researching one storyline, writing another, and editing the third. Still, she often spends two to three years researching and developing a single project. In the heat of a first draft, it is not uncommon for her to spend eighteen to twenty hours a day glued to her 1946 Olympia manual typewriter.

Family, children, and young people are the central focus of her life, and her passion, which frequently shows in her writing. She deals with the themes that touch on the most pressing issues of real life, which makes her books universal, and touch so many people. She is fascinated by the pressing life situations that affect us all, how people handle them and are often transformed as a result. And her novels have explored subjects such as kidnapping, incest, mental illness, suicide, death, divorce, adoption, marriage, loss, cancer, war, among others. She also frequently writes about historical themes, shedding new light on familiar historical events with meticulously accurate research.

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***I received this book from my wonderful library for my own personal reading. ***