Book Review: Wink Poppy Midnight by April Genevieve Tucholke

Genre: YA Contemporary Mystery Romance
Publication: March 2016 by Dial Books
Acquisition: bought

Synopsis:

Every story needs a hero.

Every story needs a villain.

Every story needs a secret.

Wink is the odd, mysterious neighbor girl, wild red hair and freckles. Poppy is the blond bully and the beautiful, manipulative high school queen bee. Midnight is the sweet, uncertain boy caught between them. Wink. Poppy. Midnight. Two girls. One boy. Three voices that burst onto the page in short, sharp, bewitching chapters, and spiral swiftly and inexorably toward something terrible or tricky or tremendous.

What really happened?

Someone knows.

Someone is lying.

(from Goodreads)

2.5 / 5 Stars

Wink, Poppy and Midnight are people. These are their actual names. They are the protagonists, each telling their own part of the story.

Their names are Wink, Poppy and Midnight...and...ok...I went with it. I mean, unique names in YA aren't a new thing.

But then we get:

Leaf, Alabama, Briggs, Buttercup, Guillermo, Sung, Talley, Bee Lee, Hops and Moon.

These are also people and these are also their real names and OMG I can't focus on anything else! What is in the water in this town! Why!?

Distracting as all hell.

There was a mystery, sort of, and a romance or 2 or 3 - I lost count after Finn, Della and Tonisha gathered with Guillermo, Sung and The Yellows...or maybe that was before Midnight talked about Alabama and Talley and France (the country -- and oh my, the fact that I needed to say 'the country' so you knew it wasn't another character? yeah...)

Ug!

I so wanted to like this book. The setting is strange and the relationships are off the wall and the characters are insane! So, it should have been a total win.

But seriously...I just couldn't get past the names! There were more traditionally named folks in here too, don't get me wrong. But when a character is mentioned in literally 1 sentence, and they are just there to be there because the scene needs people and their name is Sung...it's going to be one of the only things that stick.

Seriously though? Names aside...I didn't love the story. The plot was all over the place and Wink was just so weird, and Poppy was just so bitchy and Midnight was just so awkward teenage boy...except they weren't. Everyone is put into these neat boxes - just so they could break out of them and that's where the deep, hidden meanings and reasons for everything come out and ok, maybe I'm just too shallow but it didn't resonate with me at all.

So, would I recommend Wink Poppy Midnight? Yeah, I think I would. Reviews are all over the map and some people really loved the weirdness and some really loved the romance and most people aren't as fixated on oh! oh! shinny thing! shinny thing! as I am and totally wouldn't be bothered by the name thing.

Wink Poppy Midnight is a very unique book and if you're looking for something a little different, I think you'll enjoy it. Just because it didn't work for me, doesn't mean it won't work for you!

Hello from Vacation Land!

EDEHey Guys!

Thank you for all the kind words and well wishing!

I'm am so close to being 100% better I can just about taste it!

(In case you're wondering it tastes like victory and warm showers...ew...wait...it tastes like candy! ;)

The family and I are on our annual April visiting family, friends and belugas vaca. I'm still a little run down but I'm basically ignoring it at this point ;)

I'll be back next week, hopefully blogging away like a mad woman but in the meantime you can follow my adventures on Instagram cause I am seriously obsessed -- oh, oh - and I found a new iOS pic editor app and I've been like, filter all the things! Shadow! Highlight! Edit edit edit!

(I am obviously a highly qualified picture editor and know exactly what I'm doing ;)

I'd love to give a happy Insta follow back -- I'm @WilowRaven

Hope you all are having a great week!

See you on the flip side!

;)

Book Review: Read Bottom Up by Heel Shah and Skye Chatham

Genre: Adult Contemporary Romance
Publication: April 2015 from Dey Street Books
Acquisition: received a copy from the publisher

Synopsis:

A charming novel about falling in love (or like) in the digital age—the never-before-seen full story

Madeline and Elliot meet at a New York City restaurant opening. Flirtation—online—ensues. A romance, potentially eternal, possibly doomed, begins.

And, like most things in life today, their early exchanges are available to be scrutinized and interpreted by well-intentioned friends who are a mere click away.

Madeline and Elliot's relationship unfolds through a series of thrilling, confounding, and funny exchanges with each other, and, of course, with their best friends and dubious confidants (Emily and David). The result is a brand-new kind of modern romantic comedy, in format, in content, and even in creation—the authors exchanged e-mails in real time, blind to each other's side conversations. You will nod in appreciation and roll your eyes in recognition; you'll learn a thing or two about how the other half approaches a new relationship . . . and you will cheer for an unexpected ending that just might restore your faith in falling in love, twenty-first-century style.

(from Goodreads)

4 / 5 Stars

Adult contemporary rom-coms are very much not my thing. When this one showed up in my mail box I was thinking - thank you so much Dey Street Books for thinking of me but oh man, what am I going to do with this now!

It sat near my computer for a bit then one day I went to move it to a more convenient location and flipped through it a little.

The format of emails and text messages was intriguing and then I read the Author's Note and saw how it was written basically in real time - with each author in the dark about a lot of what the other was writing.

Color me more intrigued!

I read the first page, then the second and before I knew it was throwing my bias to the wind and I finished it in pretty much one sitting.

Read Bottom Up was a really fun. The dual perspective, the realistic relationships, the unexpected but welcomed outcome - all of it fit so well together.

A very surprising and enjoyable read!

March 2016 Wrap Up: The I went bye bye Edition

March sucked.

A minor, extremely inconvenient and very persistent medical condition kept me sidelined for most of the month.

I'm still recovering and it could have been worse.

Today I can say that I have put everything in perspective. A few weeks ago, no amount of perspective was keeping the 2am panic attacks at bay.

On a totally related note, my boyfriend is a saint.

A saint I say!

He took care of me, the house, me some more, our daughter, me again -- and he's still going strong.

Love you babe!


Also on a related note, my energy levels are still way low...and I'm lazy...

So.

Here's a list of stuff and things :)

I reviewed stuff!
Jane Steele by Lyndsay Faye | REVIEW 5/5 Stars
Until the Beginning by Amy Plum | REVIEW 4/5 Stars
Strangelets by Michelle Gagnon | REVIEW 4/5 Stars

I read things!
The Rule of Mirrors by Carah M. O'Brien
Into the Dim by Janet B. Taylor
A Gathering of Shadows by V.E. Schwab

Still linking it up at Feed Your Fiction Addiction cause even thought I'm lame Nicole is not ;)

Happy Reading everyone!

The Queen's Poisoner by Jeff Wheeler - Release Day Celebration and Giveaway!

Hi guys!

I've got another exciting book and giveaway to share with you!

Read through for an except and a chance to win yourself a copy

From Jeff Wheeler, the author of the acclaimed Muirwood Trilogies and Landmoore series, comes a groundbreaking new foray into the world of fantasy.

As usurper of the throne, the rule of King Severn Argentine’s is already highly contested. To keep his power, King Argentine rules with an iron fist and destroys any opposition. In a failed coup attempt the Duke of Kiskaddon loses his son as a permanent prisoner to the king to ensure his loyalty.

THE QUEEN’S POISONER follows the Duke’s young son Owen on his journey for redemption and revenge as he figures out how to survive the court of Kingfountain. In order to keep his head and gain the merciless king’s favor, Owen must delve deeper into the world of mystery and secrecy that surrounds him. Readers will be clamoring for the next installment of The Kingfountain Series.

Amazon | Barnes & Noble
Loving this excerpt!

Chapter 17

     A sound whispered from the corridor behind him. It was a footfall. Not the sound of a boot in the corridor beyond the wall. The sound of someone approaching within the tunnel. It was coming from behind him.
     The queasiness blossomed inside Owen and a cold sweat started on his brow. Going back was no longer an option. The tunnel was narrow and there was no place to hide, so Owen hurried forward, hoping to find an escape into the main palace corridor. It would be infinitely better to be punished for wandering the hall at night than to be caught in the Espion corridor. His little heart started to hammer wildly in his chest and the blackness in front of him became even darker somehow.
     He heard the footfalls again, coming closer.
     The boy was starting to panic. Ankarette had warned him this could happen. She had told him it was dangerous to wander the tunnels alone and that he needed to be very cautious and always listen for sounds that were out of place. Such as the footfalls behind him.
     The narrow pinch of the corridor suddenly filled in ahead of Owen, the walls closing like an arrowhead. It ended abruptly and finally. It was a dead-end.

About the Author

Jeff Wheeler took an early retirement from his career at Intel in 2014 to become a full-time author. He is, most importantly, a husband and father, and a devout member of his church. He is occasionally spotted roaming among the oak trees and granite boulders in the hills of California or in any number of the state’s majestic redwood groves. He is the author of The Covenant of Muirwood Trilogy, The Legends of Muirwood Trilogy, the Whispers from Mirrowen Trilogy, and the Landmoor Series.

To learn more about Jeff Wheeler visit his website: www.jeff-wheeler.com
You can follow him @muirwoodwheeler



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