Everything Must Go by Jenny Fran Davis
Be prepared for one of Mandy’s shortest reviews yet!
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Flora Goldwasser has fallen in love. She won’t admit it to anyone, but something about Elijah Huck has pulled her under. When he tells her about the hippie Quaker school he attended in the Hudson Valley called Quare Academy, where he’ll be teaching next year, Flora gives up her tony upper east side prep school for a life on a farm, hoping to woo him. A fish out of water, Flora stands out like a sore thumb in her vintage suits among the tattered tunics and ripped jeans of the rest of the student body. When Elijah doesn’t show up, Flora must make the most of the situation and will ultimately learn more about herself than she ever thought possible.
Told in a series of letters, emails, journal entries and various ephemera, Flora’s dramatic first year is laid out for all to see, embarrassing moments and all.
| DNF @ 20%
*I won this in a Goodreads giveaway! Thanks so much for sending me over a copy! I really appreciate it!* Okay, so there’s nothing wrong with this book. Seriously, there is nothing wrong with the book – other than the fact that it is kind of a snoozefest. It is boringggggggggggggg. That is the only issue that this book has. Otherwise, it’s a pretty good book. It has a pretty likeable main character, a fun and funky premise, and some adorable could- be moments. It has an interesting format, but sometimes I felt that the format wasn’t quite needed. It bounces from journals to letters to emails to regular prose to blog posts and more. While it was cool, it sometimes wasn’t quite needed? As I said, this book has a lot of potential to be fun and I did enjoy parts, I just found myself sitting there going, IS THIS OVER YET? And there was nothing that got me excited to push that next page over. I just sat through almost 100 pages of being bored, and I decided I had to give it up. No stars because I DNF’ed and a Snow White rating! |
Devils & Thieves by Jennifer Rush
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Eighteen-year-old Jemmie Carmichael has grown up surrounded by magic in the quiet town of Hawthorne, New York. In her world, magic users are called “kindled,” and Jemmie would count herself among them if only she could cast a simple spell without completely falling apart. It doesn’t help that she was also recently snubbed by Crowe, the dangerous and enigmatic leader of the Black Devils kindled motorcycle gang and the unofficial head of their turf.
When the entire kindled community rolls into Hawthorne for an annual festival, a rumour begins spreading that someone is practising forbidden magic. Then people start to go missing. With threats closing in from every side, no one can be trusted. Jemmie and Crowe will have to put aside their tumultuous history to find their loved ones, and the only thing that might save them is the very flaw that keeps Jemmie from fully harnessing her magic. For all her years of feeling useless, Jemmie may just be the most powerful kindled of all.
*I won this in a Goodreads giveaway! Thanks so much for sending me over a copy! I really appreciate it!*
Okay, let’s start off with this statement that totally encompasses this entire book: it was a total mess but really entertaining at parts. I loved the first third of the book. It was intriguing, fun, and yes, okay, it was cliche especially with the romance, but it was so entertaining. I loved learning the new magic system. I thought it was so cool, and I loved how much depth we had going on – magical motorcycle gang with rivals and intensity and I was loving it. It was so intriguing, and the author did a fantastic job developing this world and describing it – I was bored by any worldbuilding whatsoever.
Jemmie is an…interesting protagonist. I enjoyed pretty much, but there were a few times I really did roll my eyes hard at her. I kind of just shook my head a bit at her with her interactions with some people. However, I did enjoy her growth throughout the novel, and I did enjoy her for the most part. I did want to root her on.
I so cannot see Cinderella being in the motorcycle gang life. o.o Prince Charming’s Old Lady? Oh gosh, I can’t unsee that image.
The issue came with the predictability of the novel. I mean, I predicted almost everything that happened. I knew the big reveals (literally called the biggest one super early on); I knew what would happen with the romance (it was enjoyable at first until it got -_- faced and then just rolling my eyes); and I knew what would happen with the developments in characters and more. There was no surprise. I found myself enjoying the first part since the world was so new, but after that, I found myself not enjoying it so much since I knew what was coming. Would you want to read or see something that you already know the outcome? And the villain was just laughable.
I did find this book super breezy, though. It was such a quick read. However, the predictability and kind of lame romance really tugged down this book that had an absolutely interesting and fun world. I was so impressed by the premise, but the execution caused a lot of issues. I’m still so on the fence of if I’ll pick up the second book in the series – that’s how much of a mess that this story has put me into. 2 crowns and a Cinderella rating!
