If it’s Not a Rant, It’s a Rave: A Review of The Map from Here to There by Emery Lord

Title: The Map From Here to There
Author: Emery Lord
Publication date: January 7, 2020
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary
Rating: ★★★★

Synopsis:

Acclaimed author Emery Lord crafts a gorgeous story of friendship and identity, daring to ask: What happens after happily ever after?

It’s senior year, and Paige Hancock is finally living her best life. She has a fun summer job, great friends, and a super charming boyfriend who totally gets her. But senior year also means big decisions. Weighing “the rest of her life,” Paige feels her anxiety begin to pervade every decision she makes. Everything is exactly how she always wanted it to be–how can she leave it all behind next year? In her head, she knows there is so much more to experience after high school. But in her heart, is it so terrible to want everything to stay the same forever?

Emery Lord’s award-winning storytelling shines with lovable characters and heartfelt exploration of life’s most important questions.

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Well, you guys, it’s official, Emery Lord is a contemporary writing queen. Throughout The Map from Here to There, Emery made me swoon, cry, and laugh. My anxiety peeked at the most vulnerable and heartbreaking moments, but in the end, after calming my hammering heart, I highly enjoyed Paige’s story and her ability to battle the stress that ensues during her senior year of high school.

As a sequel to The Start of Me and You, one of my all-time favorite contemporary books, The Map from Here to There will tug at your heartstrings. Lord’s passionate writing gives life to the most realistic and dynamic characters. She immerses the pages with familial dynamics, strong female friendships, and swoon-worthy relationships. Her knack to encompass anxiety, mental health, adolescent decision making,  and the streaming thoughts of panic and worry of a teenage girl’s future endeavors bursts throughout the novel. I could not put this book down.

Although The Map from Here to There is a sequel, the book can be read as a standalone tracing Paige’s journey through her senior year and focusing on big choices regarding college, her future, anxiety, and deeply rooted relationships. This novel is filled with hopes, dreams, struggles, and frustrations; it’s a must read for contemporary bibliophiles. Lord’s writing surrounds you like a comforting hug, as Paige, Max, and her friends deal with life-changing decisions while truly finding themselves one step at a time. 

♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦

Blogger Note: Last year, I received this book as a gift from the author during a book event. I was not asked to review or promote the book. I reviewed the book at my own discretion.  All fangirling, statements, and opinions in this review are my own.

My Most Anticipated Book Releases of 2020

Hello, Book Ravers! Happy 2020, which means New Year, New Books! Every since these books were announced, I have been so (im)patiently waiting for these new book releases, so I am so happy 2020 is finally here.

1. The Map From Here to There by Emery Lord: AHHH! The sequel to The Start of Me and You is almost here, and I am freaking out. I loved Paige and Max’s story, and I cannot wait to see how their story unfolds in this next book. GIMME GIMME GIMME!

Title: The Map From Here to There
Author: Emery Lord
Publication date: January 7, 2020
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary

Synopsis

Acclaimed author Emery Lord crafts a gorgeous story of friendship and identity, daring to ask: What happens after happily ever after?

It’s senior year, and Paige Hancock is finally living her best life. She has a fun summer job, great friends, and a super charming boyfriend who totally gets her. But senior year also means big decisions. Weighing “the rest of her life,” Paige feels her anxiety begin to pervade every decision she makes. Everything is exactly how she always wanted it to be–how can she leave it all behind next year? In her head, she knows there is so much more to experience after high school. But in her heart, is it so terrible to want everything to stay the same forever?

Emery Lord’s award-winning storytelling shines with lovable characters and heartfelt exploration of life’s most important questions.

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

2. The Midnight Lie by Marie Rutkoski: I LOOOOOOOOOOOOVE Marie Rutkoski’s The Winner’s Trilogy, and when I found out about The Midnight Lie, I knew I had to have it. Set in the Winner’s world, I’m so excited to see if we get a cameo from Kestrel and Arin. Please, book gods, let there be a cameo by these two! Plus the book comes out on my birthday, so the book fairies are giving me the best birthday present of the year.

Title: The Midnight Lie
Author: Marie Rutkoski
Publication date: March 3, 2020
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (Fierce Reads/Macmillan)
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy

Synopsis

Where Nirrim lives, crime abounds, a harsh tribunal rules, and society’s pleasures are reserved for the High Kith. Life in the Ward is grim and punishing. People of her low status are forbidden from sampling sweets or wearing colors. You either follow the rules, or pay a tithe and suffer the consequences.

Nirrim keeps her head down and a dangerous secret close to her chest.

But then she encounters Sid, a rakish traveler from far away who whispers rumors that the High Caste possesses magic. Sid tempts Nirrim to seek that magic for herself. But to do that, Nirrim must surrender her old life. She must place her trust in this sly stranger who asks, above all, not to be trusted.

Set in the world of the New York Times–bestselling Winner’s Trilogy, beloved author Marie Rutkoski returns with an epic LGBTQ romantic fantasy about learning to free ourselves from the lies others tell us—and the lies we tell ourselves.

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

3. Chasing Lucky by Jenn Bennett: GIVE ME ALL THE JENN BENNETT BOOKS! If you aren’t new to my blog, you know I adore Jenn and her books so, so much. I love her quirky characters, the swoons, and Bennett’s realistic depiction of teens, sex positivity, and adolescent issues. When I first found out about Chasing Lucky, I may have screamed and immediately added the book to my TBR. There’s a family owned bookstore and a brooding boy . . . OHMYGOD just kill me with your addicting and musing words now, Jenn.

Title: Chasing Lucky
Author: Jenn Bennett
Publication date: April 7, 2020
Publisher: Simon Pulse (Simon Teen)
Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Synopsis

In this coming-of-age romance perfect for fans of Jenny Han and Sarah Dessen, a rule-abiding teen embraces her more rebellious side while falling for her ex-boyfriend’s arch-nemesis.

Josie Saint-Martin is well-versed in the art of concealment. Bullied as a child, she’s spent most of her life with her single mother, moving from city to city, covering up what she doesn’t want others to see, comfortable behind the lens of her favorite vintage camera . . .until Josie’s grandmother dies and they return to her mother’s historical New England hometown to run the family bookstore. There, Josie pulls off the ultimate camouflage: dating Adrian, the Harvard-bound son of the most influential man in town.

But her smokescreen is blown when Adrian breaks up with her during his high school graduation party, and Josie’s poorly executed act of revenge lands her big-time trouble—jail alongside the last person she’d want to share a mugshot with: the mysterious and brooding son of the boat mechanic next door, Lucky Karras.

Forced to spend the summer together in mandatory community service, Josie and Lucky become the talk of their coastal town—shamed, trolled, and publicly disgraced. The weird thing is, Josie starts to not mind, because the pair have more in common than she once thought. A lot more. But during a summer of secrets, in a town built on gossip, everything rises to the surface. Can Josie and Lucky swim past these obstacles, or will they both go down together?

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

4. Beach Read by Emily Henry: OH, hi there new adult novel by one of my favorite young adult writers in the world. 2019 was the year I fell into an adult romance genre hole, and I’m so excited to see that Emily Henry is writing a book that will have me falling in even deeper. Give me the swoons, please! 

Title: Beach Read
Author: Emily Henry
Publication date: May 19, 2020
Publisher: Berkley
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Synopsis

A romance writer who no longer believes in love and a literary writer stuck in a rut engage in a summer-long challenge that may just upend everything they believe about happily ever afters.

Augustus Everett is an acclaimed author of literary fiction. January Andrews writes bestselling romance. When she pens a happily ever after, he kills off his entire cast.

They’re polar opposites.

In fact, the only thing they have in common is that for the next three months, they’re living in neighboring beach houses, broke, and bogged down with writer’s block.

Until, one hazy evening, one thing leads to another and they strike a deal designed to force them out of their creative ruts: Augustus will spend the summer writing something happy, and January will pen the next Great American Novel. She’ll take him on field trips worthy of any rom-com montage, and he’ll take her to interview surviving members of a backwoods death cult (obviously). Everyone will finish a book and no one will fall in love. But as the summer stretches on, January discovers a gaping plot hole in the story she’s been telling herself about her own life, and begins to wonder what other things she might have gotten wrong, including her ideas about the man next door.

Goodreads | Amazon| Barnes & Noble

5. Girl, Serpent, Thorn by Melissa Bashardoust: HOLY MOLY this cover is gorgeous. When cover love strikes, you better believe I am looking up the synopsis of the book. I am in need of a deeply rooted fairy tale-esque novel, and this book checks all my boxes: magic, mystery, and curses.

Title: Girl, Serpent, Thorn
Author: Melissa Bashardoust
Publication date: May 12, 2020
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Genres: Fantasy, Young adult, Retelling

Synopsis

A captivating and utterly original fairy tale about a girl cursed to be poisonous to the touch, and who discovers what power might lie in such a curse…

There was and there was not, as all stories begin, a princess cursed to be poisonous to the touch. But for Soraya, who has lived her life hidden away, apart from her family, safe only in her gardens, it’s not just a story.

As the day of her twin brother’s wedding approaches, Soraya must decide if she’s willing to step outside of the shadows for the first time. Below in the dungeon is a demon who holds knowledge that she craves, the answer to her freedom. And above is a young man who isn’t afraid of her, whose eyes linger not with fear, but with an understanding of who she is beneath the poison.

Soraya thought she knew her place in the world, but when her choices lead to consequences she never imagined, she begins to question who she is and who she is becoming…human or demon. Princess or monster.

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Waiting on Wednesday: The Map from Here to There by Emery Lord

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme that highlights pre-publication/upcoming releases that readers cannot wait to get their hands on. It is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.

Title: The Map From Here to There
Author: Emery Lord
Publication date: January 7, 2020
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary

Synopsis

No spoilers . . . but this is the sequel to The Start of Me and You.

Also, I just love this cover. 

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Top 5 Tuesday: Summertime Reads

Top 5 Tuesday is a weekly meme created and hosted by The Bionic Book Worm. 

Today’s topic: Top 5 Summertime Reads

Click on my photographs to be linked to my review or the book’s Goodreads page.

What are some of your favorite summertime reads?

Top 5 Tuesday: Covers with Green, Blue, Purple

Top 5 Tuesday is a weekly meme created and hosted by The Bionic Book Worm. 

Today’s topic: Top 5 Covers with Green, Blue, and Purple

Click on the my photographs to be linked to my review or the book’s Goodreads page.

Greens and Blues: I adore Emery Lord’s books, especially The Names They Gave Us. Plus look at this cover. The picture doesn’t do the green and blue sunset justice. Also, the stars in the trees are silver foiled and sparkle, which I love. 

Blue: Christina Rosetti’s poem “Goblin Market” is one of my favorite Victorian poems, and when I found out Wintersong was a slight retelling of the poem, I knew I had to read it. And you guys, this book is so good.

Green and Purple: Love and Other Alien Experiences is such an adorable rom-com story. The story focuses on some mental health issues and I loved the “you’ve got mail” feels of the book too.

Blue: I am a collector of Leigh Bardugo’s books, especially her first series, so when I found The Gathering Dark, the alternate UK title for Shadow and Bone, I knew I had to own it. I really love the blue tones on this cover. 

When I first saw the cover of Black Bird of the Gallows, I knew I had to have it before I even bought it. I love the black bird and all the purple hues. 

What are some of your favorite books that are green, blue, purple?

 

If It’s Not a Rant, It’s a Rave: The Names They Gave Us by Emery Lord

Title: The Names They Gave Us
Author: Emery Lord
Publication date: May 16, 2017
Publisher:  Bloomsbury USA Childrens
Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary
Format: e-ARC from Netgalley; physical ARC blogger exchange

ABOUT THE BOOK:

Lucy Hansson was ready for a perfect summer with her boyfriend, working at her childhood Bible camp on the lake. But when her mom’s cancer reappears, Lucy falters—in faith, in love, and in her ability to cope. When her boyfriend “pauses” their relationship and her summer job switches to a different camp—one for troubled kids—Lucy isn’t sure how much more she can handle. Attempting to accept a new normal, Lucy slowly regains footing among her vibrant, diverse coworkers, Sundays with her mom, and a crush on a fellow counselor. But when long-hidden family secrets emerge, can Lucy set aside her problems and discover what grace really means?

LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | B&N |  The Book Depository

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When summer hits, my “READ ALL THE CONTEMPORARY BOOKS” alarm goes off. From there I’m in the world of swoons, tears, laughter, and sometimes heartache. And when I want to read the most realistic and heart-fulfilling contemporary book, I always turn to the QUEEN OF CONTEMPORARY WRITERS, Emery Lord. Emery Lord is one of my favorite contemporary authors, at least in my top three, so suck it (Pam Beasley quote there, sorry, I had to do it). And once again Emery’s words have made my eyes water, my heart ache, and my soul feel like it needs a giant hug. So friends and fellow book lovers, I’m going to tell you this now, Emery Lord’s The Names They Gave Us is going to put you on an emotional, reading roller coaster but luckily there is the comfort of campfires and s’mores to warm up the pages. 

One of my favorite parts about reading Emery’s books are how relatable her characters are. Once again she has created a main character, Lucy, who is realistically flawed and easy to connect with.  Throughout The Names They Gave Us, Lucy questions her motives and choices when it comes to awkward, stressful, and guarded social situations. As the daughter of a preacher, she questions God but at the same feels shameful with her intentions. Although it’s heartbreaking to a see Lucy struggle throughout the pages, it is also reassuring to see a character encounter and confront the unfair realities of life. 

I don’t want to give too much away from this book’s plot, because I honestly think, everyone will come into this book with differing world views and then leave this book with a different emotional contemplation. The Names They Gave Us is not a “cancer” book, but the novel does bring in the emotional charge that comes with cancer: a brutal black hole that inevitably swallows up happiness and light. The solidity of cancer tests the main character’s willpower, her faith, her family, her friends, and her future. In The Names They Gave Us, cancer is the driving force that sets the main character on a new path: a path that brings her to a summer camp which helps her meet a diverse group of people, adapt to new beginnings, and a new perspective on life.

At camp, Lucy is able to “people watch,” ponder and observe past lives and choices, and contemplate her own future. Overall, this novel is an emotional package about self-discovery, forming meaningful friendships, and finding ways to emotionally cope and face difficult situations. In The Names They Gave Us, Emery writes with such raw passion and puts so much courage and sincerity in her characters; in the end, she has created a story about honesty, compassion, forgiveness, and fully living. 

In The Names They Gave Us, there’s a part where the young camp counselors gather around a campfire and discuss their highs and lows of the week. So I thought I would break the rest of my review down into the high and lows of the book. The highs are my most beloved topics that the Emery Lord touches on and lows are self-explanatory.  

Biracial relationships.
Teen pregnancy.
Lucy and Henry Morris Jones IV
Stories within stories.
“Posy and the Dreaming Tree”

cancer sucks
Cancer Sucks!
CANCER SUCKS!
CANCER REALLY SUCKS!
CANCER REALLY, REALLY SUCKS!!!

NOTE: Thank you to Netgalley and Bloomsbury  for providing me an e-galley/e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All statements and opinions are my own.

W…W…W…Wednesday: 03/29/2017

W…W…W…Wednesday

W…W…W…Wednesday is hosted by Taking on a World of Words and includes Three Ws:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

(Click on the book cover to be linked to its Goodreads page)

WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY READING?

I just started this book today. I’m part of the blog tour, and I have a strong feeling I’m going to love this book. 

WHAT DID YOU RECENTLY FINISH READING?

I really liked this book, and I’m currently putting a blog review together. I hope to have it up a few weeks before its release date in May.

OH MY GOD, YOU GUYS!!! A Million Junes is probably my new favorite book of the year. I loved every word and every chapter. I’m in the process of putting all my thoughts together, but overall the story is beautiful, the characters are sarcastic and funny, and throughout the work I just felt so enchanted by the words. Full review will be posted soon. 

Read this book for book club. I liked it but didn’t love it. Ugh, Catherine Howard just annoyed and infuriated me during the entire book. Kitty was the only character that I liked and kept me interested in finishing the book.

WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU’LL READ NEXT?

How cute is this cover? I bought the UK edition (pictured above) and I cannot wait to read it.

How does your week of reading look?

W…W…W…Wednesday: 03/22/2017

W…W…W…Wednesday

W…W…W…Wednesday is hosted by Taking on a World of Words and includes Three Ws:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

(Click on the book cover to be linked to its Goodreads page)

WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY READING?

Emery Lord is one of my favorite contemporary authors, and so far I am really enjoying this book. 

WHAT DID YOU RECENTLY FINISH READING?

I didn’t love this book as much as I thought I would, but it was still a good read. My full review will be up on Thursday.

I have heard mix reviews for Traitor to the Throne. I, however, loved it. I should have a review up soon.

WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU’LL READ NEXT?

I won a copy of The Beast Is An Animal from SimonTeen on Goodreads. The cover is so beautiful and creepy. I cannot wait to read it.

How does your week of reading look?

Top Ten Tuesday: Reading Slump Cure

HOSTED by The Broke and the Bookish

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This week’s topic is…

Top Ten Books that Get Me Out of Reading Slumps

(Click on the book cover to be linked to its Goodreads page or my review)

The Kate Daniels series is my favorite urban fantasy series, and book 4, Magic Bleeds, is my favorite book out of the series so far. I love Kate Daniels–she is so badass and fierce. And the sassy, snarky, and sarcastic dialogue between her and Curran always makes my day. 

I found Happiness for Beginners by accident last year, and I loved it. I love it so much that I have turned to it two times for a reading slump cure.  I love how Helen pushes herself throughout the book, and I especially enjoyed the dynamics between Helen and Jake.

I’ve lost count of how many times I have read Since You’ve Been Gone. As an introvert and an people-observer, Emily reminds me of me when I was her age. I never had a Frank, but I’m so glad she found him in the book.

This is my classy, swoony book that I turned to ALL the time, because it’s a cheesy, quick, and light-hearted read. 

I can never get enough of Kestrel and Arin, so whenever a reading slump hits, I want to be in their world and in their heads, because they are perfect for each other.

This is one of those books I wish I had when I was in high school/early college. It’s a quick and genuinely cute book to fall in love with over and over.

I feel like Dumplin’ is one of those books that changed my perspective of the “typical” girl found in young adult books. Willowdean is a memorable character that I wish I could meet in person. I wish they would make this book into a movie!

The Mercy Thompson series is another urban fantasy series that I LOVE SO MUCH. I could reread this series over and over, and still want more. 

The Start of Me and You is my favorite Emery Lord book (so far). It touches base on losing someone, starting new friendships, first loves, anxiety, and fandoms. It is a cute and quick read that always cures my reading slumps.

Brighton Walsh is one of my favorite New Adult writers, and Tessa Ever After was the first book I read by her. It’s realistic and sexy and funny as hell. Definitely a great book that has gotten me out of a few reading slumps.

What are some books that you turn to when
you are experiencing a reading slump?

ARC REVIEW: WHEN WE COLLIDED

ARC REVIEW of When We Collided by Emery Lord

Title: When We Collided
By: Emery Lord
Release Date: April 5, 2016
Pages: 352 (Hardcover)
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Format: Print ARC
Source: Blogger book exchange

GOODREADS SUMMARY:

Meet Vivi and Jonah: A girl and a boy whose love has the power save or destroy them.

Vivi and Jonah couldn’t be more different. Vivi craves anything joyful or beautiful that life can offer. Jonah has been burdened by responsibility for his family ever since his father died. As summer begins, Jonah resigns himself to another season of getting by. Then Vivi arrives, and suddenly life seems brighter and better. Jonah is the perfect project for Vivi, and things finally feel right for Jonah. Their love is the answer to everything. But soon Vivi’s zest for life falters, as her adventurousness becomes true danger-seeking. Jonah tries to keep her safe, but there’s something important Vivi hasn’t told him.

Perfect for fans of E. Lockhart and Jandy Nelson, When We Collided is a powerful story of two teens whose love is put to the test by forces beyond their control.

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MY REVIEW: 

 Poetic. Truthful. Heartbreaking. 

When We Collided is a very poetic and realistic, young adult contemporary that approaches many topics: fractured families, loss, jealousy, adulthood, mental illness, and the difficulty to dive into new friendships and hold on to old ones. 

When We Collided encompasses alternating perspectives between Vivi and Jonah. Both teenagers use their summer to explore the realities of life’s adventurous embraces, but also its severe punches. 

Vivi is full of life and is rambunctious at times. Her high-spirited soul and vintage-clothing-wearing lifestyle sways the reader through a pendulum of emotions—you will love her and her positive attitude—but sometimes her danger-seeking self becomes too much for both Jonah and the reader to endure. Do you ever stick your arms out and start spinning as fast as can, and in the end you’re restlessly dizzy? Vivi is that fun-loving girl that dares herself to spin and spin and spin as fast as she can. But Vivi is also that unwanted dizziness—that chaotic loss of control that you experience as you try to regain your balance and quickly make the world stand still again. 

The author, Emery Lord, strategically balances Vivi’s rollicking actions with Jonah’s maturity and endearing nature to take care of his family, friends, and neighbors. Jonah’s life is fractured. He has suffered unbearable loss, which is barely comforted but layered with responsibilities that are beyond his years to control. Jonah is cute, lovable, and the friend that everyone wants a good hug from. Even I want to hug him and state, “that hole in your life…that hole in your heart…will always hurt, but over time that hurt will just be an ache, a constant reminder that loss can never be forgotten. But don’t forget, you still have permission to laugh, cry, and live.” 

I’m not going to spoil the secrets and stories that the main characters withhold from each other, but in the end, the truth is leaked and hearts are meddled with. In When We Collided, Emery Lord reminds her readers that life does not always have a happy ending, a happy beginning, or even a happy in-between; however, sometimes we are lucky to have people that insert slits of laughter and joy into our existence, and in those times, we are truly alive. 

RANTS:         I know that all books have an ending, but I honestly did not want this book to end–it was that good. When We Collided will most definitely be a re-read for me when the hardcover is released.

RAVES:          Emery Lord eloquently sets up a very well-paced, heartfelt, and lyrical story for her readers. I also enjoyed the familial interactions that Vivi experiences with Jonah’s family, especially with his little sister. More importantly, I appreciated and loved how Emery effectively approaches the topics of parental loss and mental illness in a very truthful and honest manner.

NOTE:           I received this ARC through a book exchange with a fellow blogger/booklover. All statements and opinions are mine.

 

MY RATING