The Moon and More by Sarah Dessen

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
If You Like: Teen romance, coming of age novels, beach reads
Similar to: Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series, other Sarah Dessen novels
Ages: 13-30

Normally, I can't wait to read a Sarah Dessen book, but I was a little disappointed with this one.  It took me about a month to read this when normally I would finish a Sarah Dessen book in a day or two. Maybe it's because it was more about Emaline's relationships with her family members and her finding herself, rather than her relationship with a boyfriend.  I guess I just like a stronger romance.  I did however, fall in love with her little brother Benji.  He reminded me of my little brother, and all of the good and simple things in life.

It's Emaline's last summer before college, and her biological father and brother, who have never really been a big part of her life are in town.  Her father is going through a divorce, and is spending the summer with her brother, Benji, before everything is finalized.  Emaline breaks up with her longterm boyfriend, Luke, at the beginning of summer, and persues a fling with Theo who's on vacation for the summer in Colby.

During the summer Emaline struggles to find her place in the world when her biological father and Theo push her to move past Colby and into the real world and her mother, stepfather, sisters, and friends keep her true to herself.  Will Emaline remain close to her roots, or dive into something completely new and different?

This book was very slow moving, and that's why it took so long to finish.  The last 50 pages was where most of the story took place while the first 400 pages dragged on.  Still, Sarah Dessen has a way with writing that captivates you, and she has a way of capturing the essence of being a teenager, with all of her dreams ahead of her, about to grow up.

When A Heart Stops by Lynette Eason

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
If You Like: Mysteries, Romance, Christian Fiction
Similar to: Nicholas Sparks novels
Ages: 13-100

In the second book of The Deadly Reunions Series, Serena, a medical examiner, has received a package.  Ever since receiving the package from her friend Jillian, who disappeared years ago, bad things have been happening to her.  Serena's house is broken into while she's sleeping, her purse is almost snatched off her arm causing her to nearly be hit by a car, and she finds herself in the middle of a serial killer's game.

Luckily Serena has a good team on her side that includes some police and detective friends and coworkers, Colton, Katie, Hunter, Paul, and Dominic.  Dominic is the brother of Serena's best friend, Alexia, and Serena finds herself falling for him.  Dominic feels the same way about Serena, but can he protect her from the serial killers threat?  What secrets are in the package that Jillian said not to open unless she was dead?

Lynette Eason has a way of writing that lets you know she's a Christian author without throwing it in your face.  Her books are more appopriate for younger readers because she's a Christian author and she keeps it PG-13.

Although I did really enjoy this book, I found it very predictable.  It was almost an exact replica of the first book in this series, which kind of detours me from reading other works by Lynette Eason.  Still, there is a sense of mystery from this book that makes me want to read the third book to see how the ongoing story finishes out.

All I Need by Susane Colasanti

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
If You Like: Teen romance
Similar to: Sarah Dessen novels, Elizabeth Scott novels
Ages: 13-25

This book was a quick read, but it felt like a million books I've read before.  Sometimes that can be a good thing, but in the majority of this book Skye and Seth weren't together, and I like reading the super cheesy happy stuff rather than real life.

Skye and Seth meet during their summer vacation.  They feel an instant connection even from all the way across the beach.  They spend two wonderful days together, but on the day when they're supposed to say goodbye, Seth doesn't show up.  Both Skye and Seth think about each other all year until they finally find each other again during their next summer vacation.  They spend the best two weeks of their lives together, and this time they make plans to spend the year alternating visits to one another.  They realize that it is harder than they thought it would be.  Do Skye and Seth have what it takes to make their long distance relationship work?  Is love really all you need?

I don't really care for Colasanti's alternating voice style, but maybe some people love that.  I end up forgetting who is telling the story.  I loved how much the character's were in love with each other, and I loved their connection. This book covers how hard it can be to be in a long distance relationship with the person you're meant to spend the rest of your life with.

The Lost Summer by Kathryn Williams

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
If You Like: Coming of age, teen fiction, summer books, camp stories
Similar to: Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants Series, Elizabeth Scott books, especially Between Here and Forever
Ages: 13-25

Camp has always been a place where Helena felt at home.  It has always been a time to be a kid and hang out with her best friend, Katie Bell.  This year is Helena's first year as a camp counselor, but because of Katie Bell's birthday being three months short of the cutoff date, Katie Bell is forced to be a camper instead of a counselor.  Helena is sure that nothing will change their friendship because of it, but she finds herself growing up and growing apart from Katie Bell.  She now hangs out with the other counselors, and the boys from a nearby camp, Brownstone, while Katie Bell is still doing the same "childish" things she did last year.  Can Katie Bell and Helena still be friends, or have they just grown too far apart?

In this coming of age novel about a girl on the verge of adulthood, Helena learns what it means to grow up and become an adult.  She learns about relationships, love, friendship, and responsibility.  Helena finds that everything in life isn't as easy or as perfect as it had always seemed. 

I liked this book, and it reminded me of simpler times from my life.  The ending came out of nowhere, which was a bit strange, and completely changed the whole book, but I wasn't disappointed.  This is a good teen read for anyone leaving their high school years behind, and moving forward into adulthood.

The Host by Stephenie Meyer

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
If You Like: Dystopian stories, love triangles
Similar To: The Hunger Games, Twilight
Ages: 13-50

This is a good book, but it's not very fast paced, and it's a lot longer than I think it should be. It's also rather confusing at first, but I had seen the preview for the movie, which helped guide me a little.

Melanie Stryder was one of the few humans left who hadn't been taken over by a soul. She traveled with her younger brother Jamie, and the love of her life, Jared. Now, she wakes up, and she's the host for a soul from another planet. The problem is that both entities are living in one body. They can communicate with each other, and it doesn't seem as though that happens with other souls and their host bodies.

The Seeker assigned to Melanie and Wanderer (the name given to the soul) is suspicious of this body too. She has been keeping a close eye on Wanderer, and asks Wanderer to meet her in another city. Wanderer has Melanies memories and has also fallen in love with Jamie and Jared. On her way to meet the Seeker, she decides she wants to find Jared and Jamie based on the directions her Uncle Jeb gave her to an underground cave.

When Wanderer finds the cave that houses 35 humans, she is not welcomed with open arms. In fact, she is treated like a prisoner because she is the enemy. After a while though, the friendships and relationships she develops earn her a place in the caves with the humans. The problem is that the Seeker will never give up her search for Wanderer, and that puts all of the humans in the cave in danger.

Will the Seeker find the hidden cave. Can Jared learn to love Melanie's body while it inhabits Wanderer's soul? Is there a way to remove a soul from a body so that the humans can return to the selves they once were?

Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
If You Like: Romance, suspense, a good book
Similar to: Nothing I've ever read before, except maybe other Nicholas Sparks books.
Ages: 18-100

I love when you are so invested in a good book that time seems to stop for you because you are transported to a completely different place, but then you finish the book, and you're happy you finally get to the ending you've been anticipating, but then you realize that it's over, and you lay in bed for a few minutes just basking in the fact that it was such an amazing book, and then you don't know what to do with your life.  That's how I felt when I read this book.

Katie has finally escaped her past. She has escaped her abusive cop husband in Boston and has settled in a small town in North Carolina called Southport.  She doesn't have much, but at least she has her freedom.  Katie plans on saving up money to be prepared when her husband, Kevin, finds her again.  What she doesn't plan on is having a reason to stay in Southport when she meets people in that make her feel more safe and at home than she's ever felt in her life.  Although she's gaurded her heart as best she could, she finds herself falling for a handsome and gentle widower, Alex, and his two children, Josh and Kristen.  The problem is, Katie's detective husband just won't give up until he finds her, and punishes her and everyone she loves for running away.

Will Kevin be able to find Katie in Southport, and if he does, what does that mean for her and Alex, Josh, and Kristen?

Although I have a special place in my heart for all Nicholas Sparks' books, this one was one of the best books I've ever read.  It was romantic, suspenseful, and real.  It stood out to me, and I couldn't turn the pages fast enough to find out what was going to happen next.

Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
If You Like: Teen romance, witchcraft, paranormal, books set in the south
Similar to: Twilight, Meg Cabot novels
Ages: 14-30

Although it took me a while to finish this book, I found it to be a pretty good story.  The characters are easily likeable, and I loved the way this book made me feel while reading it.

When Lena moves into the small town of Gaitlin, Ethan's whole world changes.  He meets Lena, and it's love at first sight. In fact, it feels as though he's known her and loved her forever.  He finds out that Lena is a Castor, and that on her sixteenth birthday, a curse is going to claim her for either the dark side or the light side, but no one knows which it will be until the day of Lena's birthday.  It could be dangerous for Ethan to be getting so close to Lena, but he can't resist fate.

Will Lena be claimed for the dark or the light?  What will happen to Ethan and all of the people that Lena loves?

This book was really good and I enjoyed reading it, but it was long, and the story tended to drag on.  I want to read the other three books to find out the ending of the story, but if I never picked up any of the sequels, I think I'd be ok with that too.  This book is still worth a read.
Sidenote: Don't expect the movie to be anything like the book, or you will be sadly disappointed with it, like I was.

Destined by Aprilynne Pike

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
If You Like: Fairies, Love Triangles
Similar to: Twilight
Ages: 13-100

Make sure that you have a whole day to devote to reading this when you start it because you won't be able to put it down. It's been a long time since I've felt that way about a book, but this book is action packed from start to finish. It killed me to have to stop reading this to do anything else.  This book and whole series is amazing!

Now that Laurel, Tam, David, and Chelsea know that Yuki is a Winter Faerie, they have to keep her captured in a ring of salt or else she can kill them and hurt all of Avalon.  Klea is a Fall faerie gone bad who has teamed up with trolls in order to take over Avalon.  A war between Klea and her army is about to take place in Avalon, but Avalon has Laurel and Tam on their side, and for the first time since Medevil times, two humans.  Will that be enough to win the war and keep Avalon under the rule of the Winter faeries, or will Klea end up taking over and destroying Avalon?

This book is the last book in the Wings series, and it finished out the story perfectly. I would reccommend this book series to anyone no matter what type of reading you do because it is just a truely unique series of books, and an amazing story.

Reached by Ally Condie

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
If You Like: Dystopian future, revolutions
Similar to: Hunger Games Trilogy, and Divergent by Veronica Roth
Ages: 13-100

I loved this book just like I loved the rest of the Matched Trilogy.  Ally Condie is an amazing writer who completely transports you into her story.

The Rising has begun to strike against the Society.  Ky is flying planes for the Rising, Xander is working as a Medic, and Cassia is back to her sorting job in the Society.  They are all doing their part to infiltrate the Society to do their part for the Rising. 

The Rising plans to give the people of the Society a plague that can only be cured by the Rising.  It works at first, but then the Plague develops a mutation that not even the Rising has a cure for.  Some are immune to the Plague, but most are not.  It's a race against time to find the cure.  Will the Rising be able to find a cure?  If they do find a cure, who will it be too late for?

This book was so suspenseful that I couldn't wait to get to the last page.  I wasn't disappointed with the ending, and I know other readers won't either.