If It’s Not a Rant, It’s a Rave: Review of When the Sky Fell On Splendor by Emily Henry

Title: When the Sky Fell on Splendor
Author:  Emily Henry
Publisher: Razorbill
Release Date: March 12, 2019
Genres: Young Adult, Science Fiction
Rating: ★★★★

Synopsis:

Almost everyone in the small town of Splendor, Ohio, was affected when the local steel mill exploded. If you weren’t a casualty of the accident yourself, chances are a loved one was. That’s the case for seventeen-year-old Franny, who, five years after the explosion, still has to stand by and do nothing as her brother lies in a coma.

In the wake of the tragedy, Franny found solace in a group of friends whose experiences mirrored her own. The group calls themselves The Ordinary, and they spend their free time investigating local ghost stories and legends, filming their exploits for their small following of YouTube fans. It’s silly, it’s fun, and it keeps them from dwelling on the sadness that surrounds them.

Until one evening, when the strange and dangerous thing they film isn’t fiction–it’s a bright light, something massive hurdling toward them from the sky. And when it crashes and the teens go to investigate…everything changes.

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You guys, where do I even start. Emily Henry wrote one of my favorite books in the world, A Million Junes, and I could not wait until her next book to knock me off my feet. And here it is–When the Sky Fell on Splendor–another Henry book that takes the strong elements of the contemporary genre and splashes in frames of science fiction and fantasy. As supernatural elements are spread throughout the pages, the characters are thrown into strange phenomenons as they are dealing with cracked remnants of grief etched by loss.

When the Sky Fell on Splendor is a constant page-turner illuminated with small-town, Midwestern vibes, the disarray of a tragic event, and a group of teenage misfits. About five years ago a local steel mill explosion failed to spare well-loved neighbors, family members, and local heroes. Each character is internally processing the events that rattled their lives, and as summer unfolds their lives are suddenly changed again when they witness the crash of an unidentified flying object.

I really enjoyed When the Sky Fell on Splendor because the book focuses a lot on friendships and love. The book has the atmosphere and nostalgia of 1980’s movies, bringing in a close-knit group of friends (and a cute dog) who often engage in the exploring legends and unexplained events. Each of these teens are going through the motions of grief, loss, growing up, and self-acceptance. Overall, I loved getting lost in this story of amazing weirdos who one night are tossed into an eerie, unexplained event of bright lights, a glowing humanoid, special powers, and “what the hell is going on with the cows?”  

Note: Thank you to good friend Emma at Miss Print for gifting me an early copy of this book. 

Blog Tour & Giveaway: Review of Keeper of the Bees by Meg Kassel

Title: Keeper of the Bees
Author: Meg Kassel
Genre: YA Paranormal
Release Date: September 4th 2018
Publisher: Entangled Teen

Summary:

“Beauty and the beast like you’ve never imagined!” —New York Times bestselling author Pintip Dunn

KEEPER OF THE BEES is a tale of two teens who are both beautiful and beastly, and whose pasts are entangled in surprising and heartbreaking ways.
Dresden is cursed. His chest houses a hive of bees that he can’t stop from stinging people with psychosis-inducing venom. His face is a shifting montage of all the people who have died because of those stings. And he has been this way for centuries—since he was eighteen and magic flowed through his homeland, corrupting its people.

He follows harbingers of death, so at least his curse only affects those about to die anyway. But when he arrives in a Midwest town marked for death, he encounters Essie, a seventeen-year-old girl who suffers from debilitating delusions and hallucinations. His bees want to sting her on sight. But Essie doesn’t see a monster when she looks at Dresden.

Essie is fascinated and delighted by his changing features. Risking his own life, he holds back his bees and spares her. What starts out as a simple act of mercy ends up unraveling Dresden’s solitary life and Essie’s tormented one. Their impossible romance might even be powerful enough to unravel a centuries-old curse.

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Purchase Links: Entangled Teen

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo

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My Rants and Raves Keeper of the Bees

**please note that this review may contain spoilers**

There’s something dark and eerie about Meg Kassal’s storytelling, and when it comes to her atmospheric companion novel Keeper of the Bees, Kassal does not disappoint in giving her readers the creeps and the chills. Paralleling the the same fantasy world of her first novel Black Birds of the Gallows, Keeper of the Bees focuses on a beekeeper, Dresden, along with other paranormal beings like the harbingers.

At the very beginning of the novel, Dresden’s cursed life is shifted and it is all because of Essie, a human who chews peppercorns to stop hallucinations and delusions. But the sudden burst of pepper, does not halt this teenager from seeing Dresden for what he really is: a creature that wears the many faces of his victims that have gone mad and died due to his venomous stings.

I really enjoyed the banter and conversations that are ping-ponged back and forth between these two unusual characters, Essie and Dresden. While one thinks he is a monster, a beastly being, the other finds him “pretty” but doubts herself because she suffers from a family curse which is treated like a mental illness. There is an instant bond between these two characters. It starts with fascination, turns into friendship, and develops into romance. 

Keeper of the Bees is also a very fascinating read because Kassel creates her own legends and fantastical foundation. This book reflects some similar characteristics of traditional young adult paranormal books, but Kassal also gives a unique take on her own monsters and myths. I honestly love that her beastly characters heighten my sense of wonder but they are also so freaking creepy.  

If you are fond of books with a bit of mystery, myth, romance, paranormal elements, and a hint of horror, Keeper of the Bees is the right book to add to your TBR. The story is well-paced and I liked that the characters are challenged to face their own personal demons and actual monsters of the world.

About the Author

Meg Kassel is an author of fantasy and speculative books for young adults. A graduate of Parson’s School of Design, she’s been creating stories, whether with visuals or words, since childhood. Meg is a New Jersey native who lives in a log house in the Maine woods with her husband and daughter. As a fan of ’80s cartoons, Netflix series, and ancient mythology, she has always been fascinated and inspired by the fantastic, the creepy, and the futuristic. She is the 2016 RWA Golden Heart® winner in YA and a double 2018 RITA® finalist for her debut novel, Black Bird of the Gallows.

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If It’s Not A Rant, It’s A Rave: Love and Other Alien Experiences by Kerry Winfrey

Title: Love and Other Alien Experiences
Author: Kerry Winfrey 
Published by: Feiwel & Friends
Publication date: July 11, 2017
Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance, Mental Health

Synopsis:

I’m never going outside again. 

Mallory hasn’t left the house in sixty-seven days–since the day her dad left. She attends her classes via webcam, rarely leaves her room (much to her brother’s chagrin), and spends most of her time watching The X-Files or chatting with the always obnoxious BeamMeUp on New Mexico’s premier alien message board.

But when she’s shockingly nominated for homecoming queen, her life takes a surprising turn. She slowly begins to open up to the world outside. And maybe if she can get her popular jock neighbor Brad Kirkpatrick to be her homecoming date, her classmates will stop calling her a freak.

In this heartwarming and humorous debut, Mallory discovers first love and the true meaning of home–just by taking one small step outside her house.

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble  /  Book Depository

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I am a huge romantic comedy fan, so when I discovered Love and Other Alien Experiences by Kerry Winfrey at a local author signing, I knew I had to pick it up. Plus I could not say no to a book that mentions the X-Files. This story was one of the funniest, sweetest, and swooniest books I have read in a long time. 

While the main character suffers from anxiety and agoraphobia, Mallory is still determined to complete her high school studies via webcam. And one of her notable pastimes is actively participating on an online alien message board forum. There she is able to be herself and dive into conspiracy theories and her love for the X-Files with like-minded people. Even though Mal struggles to physically go outside, she still challenges herself to face her fears. It is through her determination that she is able to take small steps into a world filled with homecoming prospects, a partnered science project, and a possible dating life.

I adored Love and Other Alien Experiences because it is a delicious morsel that parallels many themes and tropes found in high school rom-com movies. It has the best sarcastic and witty humor, and a romantic relationship that I was hoping (and rooting) for the whole time. I am a sucker for adorable romances and I cannot help but swoon when a guy follows his instincts and gifts a bouquet of Twizzlers to his crush. If you are a fan of 90s rom-com films, swooning, nerdy pop culture references, and a book filled with laughter and so much heart, Love and Other Alien Experiences is your one-way ticket to a very satisfying read. 

NOTE:  I was not provided a copy of this book by the author or the publisher in exchange for a review. I bought this book with my own funds, and I reviewed the book at my own discretion.  All statements and opinions in this review are mine. 

If It’s Not A Rant, It’s A Rave: Review of Devils & Thieves by Jennifer Rush

Title: Devils & Thieves
Author: Jennifer Rush
Publication date: October 3, 2017
Publisher:  Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy/Urban Fantasy

Synopsis

Power corrupts. Magic kills.

Eighteen-year-old Jemmie Carmichael is 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 Hawthorne’s kindled motorcycle gang, the Devils’ League.

When the entire kindled community rolls into Hawthorne for an annual festival, a rumor spreads that someone is practicing 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. 

LINKS:   Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble |  The Book Depository

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I am so glad I picked up this entertaining book during October. Similar to this Halloween-ish month, this novel is filled with magic, mayhem, and mystery. In Devils & Thieves, every magic user, aka “kindled,” has their own unique power that they inherit from family members, who are linked to local motorcycle clubs. I really felt like this book was a perfect mashup of Charmed and Katie McGarry’s Thunder Road series. The story plot is very straightforward, but it’s the main character’s (Jemmie Carmichael) attempt to figure out her powers and her love life that sucked me in.

One of my favorite characteristics about Jemmie is her unique ability to smell and see power. As a very wallflower-ish type, Jemmie tends to underrate her magical abilities with fear and discouragement. She is very different among the other kindled population, and I can understand why she wants to hide something that she thinks is a flaw in her magic from other people. Jemmie is often predictable in her ways, but I can see her maturing and adapting to new scenarios in the next book, especially after that odd and creepy ending.

In the romance realm of  Devils & Thieves, there’s a strong sense of a love triangle. And what I like about both Jemmie’s “love” interests are that even though they are protective over her as she is over them, they always encourage Jemmie to appreciate who she is and her magical abilities. But with any type of love triangle, I picked my OTP, because deep down I knew who made Jemmie’s heart flutter uncontrollably. I have one word to encourage you to read this novel, and that is “Crowe.” *SWOONS*

Overall, I liked the magic and conflicting havoc that litters the pages of this novel. Devils & Thieves is a great start to a series that I foresee a lot of growth in the characters, more swoony romance scenes, and some more understanding of the kindled magic users. I am a big fan of one of the male leading characters, *cough* Crowe, and I cannot wait to see what other sexy pandemonium he gets into. If you want your reading month of October to be filled with spells and swoons, I highly recommend that you add Devils & Thieves to your TBR. 

My rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

NOTE: Thank you to NOVL for providing me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All statements and opinions are my own. Please note that all graphics and photographs were created by me. All quotes are from the an advanced reader’s edition of the novel and are subject to change upon publication.