Holland Davis is used to working well under pressure. As the only girl on a guy's hockey team, she has rules in order to stay on top. #1. Work harder than anyone else. #2. Keep a low profile. #3. No dating teammates. The rules have always been easy to follow until Wes, the new captain who is constantly pushing her to be better, shows her unexpected support and heart-pounding tenderness. Holland wants to take a chance on love, but she knows what everyone will say if she dates the captain. Will Holland have to give up her heart for hockey or can she find a way to fight for both. This was a delicious romance that will warm you up like hot cocoa on cold winter's day. I loved how Biren's characters defied stereotypes. I specifically loved the main character, Holland. Women everywhere will sympathize with her she fights fiercely to be true to herself and follow her dreams. This short and nearly-perfect romance is one to grab now. Highly recommended!
Cold Day in the Sun by Sara Biren
Holland Davis is used to working well under pressure. As the only girl on a guy's hockey team, she has rules in order to stay on top. #1. Work harder than anyone else. #2. Keep a low profile. #3. No dating teammates. The rules have always been easy to follow until Wes, the new captain who is constantly pushing her to be better, shows her unexpected support and heart-pounding tenderness. Holland wants to take a chance on love, but she knows what everyone will say if she dates the captain. Will Holland have to give up her heart for hockey or can she find a way to fight for both. This was a delicious romance that will warm you up like hot cocoa on cold winter's day. I loved how Biren's characters defied stereotypes. I specifically loved the main character, Holland. Women everywhere will sympathize with her she fights fiercely to be true to herself and follow her dreams. This short and nearly-perfect romance is one to grab now. Highly recommended!
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Stepsister by Jennifer Donnelly My FAVORITE book of summer filled with so many fantastic books! In stories, girls are often stuck in two roles. The perfect princess is the girl who is beautiful, humble, kind, obedient, and who always ends up marrying a prince. The evil stepsister is a physically ugly girl who is mean, spiteful, and jealous, and she always ends up alone and hated. Donnelly's powerful novel Stepsister, explores what happens to a girl who doesn't want either role. For years, Isabelle has been told she is not as pretty or as sweet as her stepsister Cinderella. After her cutting off her own toes in one last desperate act to be what everyone else wants, Isabelle still fails to win the prinace, and instead, her family's cruel treatment of the prince's bride makes them hated. Now struggling to keep her family fed, Isabelle has accepted that she will never be a pretty princess, but she wants to be more than evil stepsister. With an enormous amount of bravery, Isabelle vows to change the ending to their stories and forge a new path where a girl's worth is not based on her features but her bravery. This novel powerfully explores what it means to be a woman, a sister, and a dreamer. You will forever be changed by this new take on Cinderella and her ugly stepsisters. HIghly, highly recommended! Catwoman Soulstealer by Sarah J. Maas Selina Kyle has fought to protect her sister her entire life. She protected her from their abusive mother. She fought for the Leopards to pay for her sister's medical bills. Therefore, when her sister was threatened, Salina agreed to become an assassin, so her sister would be adopted into a loving home. Now a trained member of the League of Assassins, Selina is back in Gotham City. By day, she is the ultra-rich socialite Holly Vanderhees, but by night, she is Catwoman. With the help of Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn, Catwoman is going to shake up Gotham City forever. Luke Fox became Batwing to fight the demons that haunt him from his time in the military. With Batman away, Batwing must protect Gotham City. However, Catwoman is the most cunning, lethal, and infuriating villains he has ever faced. His neighbor Holly Vanderhees is equally challenging. Batwing vowed to protect Gotham, and he won't let a cat get in his way. Although I am not a huge DC fan, I LOVED this book. Maas is one of my favorite authors, and just like her other books, this one has unique and lovable characters, complicated relationships, strong female friendships, and heart-stopping action. You will cheer for both Selina and Luke, and the twists and turns will shock you. Highly recommended! A Very Large Expanse of Sea by Tahereh Mafi It is 2002, a year after the Twin Towers fell. With Islamophobia out control, it is an even more terrible time to be a teenage girl who wears hijab. At her new school, Shirin experiences the same ignorance and cruelty as she has dealt with her entire life. She uses music to shut out the racist comments and stupid questions and has hardened her heart so much that she expects nothing good of those around her. It mostly works until she is partnered up with Ocean James. Despite her attempts to scare him off, Ocean seems determined to get to know Shirin better. As his interest in her keeps growing, Shirin is terrified. She is fascinated by Ocean, but she knows a relationship between them would never end well. Ocean's expanse of kindness drowns out Shirin's hesitation, but their public relationship has an even worse fall-out than Shirin expected. When it seems like the world is against you, can love really win? Mafi's new book is a lyrically written story of an intense first love that will forever transform you. Shirin and Ocean's chemistry is steamy, and their journey will leave your heart full. It is one of best romances that I have ready in a very long time. I highly, highly recommend this book! Heroine by Mindy McGinnis How does a person with no previous issues go from pain management to addiction? McGinnis explores how easy this slide is in her latest novel, Heroine. Mickey is no stranger to pain. As the catcher on her softball team, she has dealt with intense physical training and injuries without complaint. However, after Mickey and her best friend are in a car accident, Mickey's hip is pulled out of socket. One surgery and three screws later, Mickey is terrified that she won't be able to play softball for her Senior season. When Mickey discovers how oxy can make her pain manageable, she is willing to break a few rules to make her rehabilitation and her season possible. The longer she uses oxy, the more it takes to get her fix. As she develops new friends who help her get her fix, Mickey treads a path that may lead to her destruction. This is a powerful and terrifying novel of how anyone could become an addict. Highly recommended! On the Come Up by Angie Thomas While some girls dream of being a princess in castle, Bri has always dreamed of becoming a queen of rap. After killing it her first time in the ring, Bri is starting to feel confident, but an incident of racial harassment at school makes her anger overflow. In her rage, she creates a powerful and controversial song called "On the Come Up." As the song goes viral, Bri's dreams of making it big are getting closer to reality. The fame and money can't come fast enough. As her family's fridge gets emptier and more bills are going unpaid, Bri's rapping needs to make money, or her family may be homeless. However, as music producers want Bri to fit a certain image, she has to decide what is worth more important: being true to herself or finding fame and wealth in rapping? No matter what, no one is going to stop Bri "on the come up." Angie Thomas' second novel hiply avoids the sophomore slump. Once again her writing is on point. Her characters are fresh and original and fight back anyone trying to fit them into stereotypes. Bri fights fiercely for her voice to be heard, her raps to be respected, and her family to be taken care of, and you have to cheer for her as she fights for her dreams. Her friends and family are equally fierce, funny, and poignant. At times, Thomas' dialogue had me laughing out loud, and other moments I was fighting tears. Like Bri, Thomas is a Wordsmith who uses language with precision and care to create a story that will leave you hungering for more. Highly, highly recommended! Attucks! Oscar Robertson and the Basketball Team that Awakened a City by Phillip Hoose It is well known that Indiana's favorite sport is basketball. Hoosiers, one of the best basketball movies of all time, was about the small-town Indiana basketball team that beat a huge school to win the Indiana basketball tournament in the 1950's. Hoose's books tells the story of another Indiana basketball team whose inspirational story would also make an unforgettable movie. Crispus Attucks high school was the all black school in a segregated Indianapolis. In the 1950's, their coach Ray Crowes steadily built the basketball program, and in 1955, they won the state championship. They were not only the first Indianapolis school to win a state basketball championship, they were also the first all black team in the United States to win a championship in a racially open tournament. The teams was lead by future Hall of Famer, Oscar Robertson. It wasn't until their team became so successful that Indiana decided to desegregate. The story of the Crispus Attack's success is a phenomenal basketball story, but it is alsa a story of the triumph of the human spirit over hatred and prejudice. Basketball fans will devour this! Highly, highly recommended! Lies You Never Told Me by Jennifer Donaldson Gabe and Elyse may live thousands of miles apart, but they both made the mistake of falling for the wrong person. When Gabe wants to take a break from his volatile girlfriend, she has other plans and vows to do whatever it takes to get Gabe back. When Elyse is cast as Juliet in her school's production of Romeo and Juliet, she leans on her teacher for help in preparing for this challenging role and ends up in her own real-life forbidden romance. Can either teen escape from their dark romances before they are completely destroyed by them? Mystery fans will clamor for this book! The twists and turns of the plot will keep you engrossed, but you will be shocked by the final twist. It is best to have your best friend read the book as well, so you can spend an hour discussing what really happened. One of the best mysteries I have read! HIghly recommended! Only a Breath Apart by Katie McGarry Jesse Lachlan's and Scarlett Copeland's lives are ruled by fear. Scarlett is terrified of never escaping her father's rage and control, and Jesse is terrified of losing his family's land. When fate makes it clear that Jesse and Scarlett must work together if they have a chance of making their future plans a reality, these former best friends reluctantly team up. As they become reacquainted, they discover their nearly magical childhood bond hasn't completely broken and is, instead, transforming into something more powerful. Then Scarlett's dad discovers their relationship, and his rage may destroy everything they hold dear. Can Scarlett and Jesse defy fate? I am a HUGE Katie McGarry fan, and I think this may be her best book yet. McGarry's characters always have so much heart, an internal kindness and integrity that makes you root for them. Scarlett's struggles to fight her father for her own identity and safety were honest and heartbreaking. Of course, Jesse's ragtag friends all have tragic backstories, and I am going to be heartbroken if each does not receiver their own novel. I also love that McGarry creates heart-stopping romance without a side of cheese. After reading a lot of clunky romances this year, Only a Breath Apart reminded me why I love the genre. I love it when complicated people find love, the ultimate magic, together. Swoon! Highly, highly recommended! Two Can Keep a Secret by Karen M. McManus Ellery is haunted by a town she has never visited, Echo Ridge. This is her mother's hometown, and the place where Ellery's aunt went missing at age 17. Malcolm is haunted by the next girl to die in Echo Ridge. Five years ago, the Lacey, the town's homecoming queen and his brother's girlfriend, was murdered. Although his brother was not charged with the murder, Malcolm's family have become pariahs. Neither case has been solved. When Ellery's mother enters rehab, Ellery and her twin brother Ezra are forced to move in with their grandmother to this town their mother can't face. Ellery and Malcolm decide to work together to try to solve both cases, but when another girl goes missing, they are desperate to find out who is behind this before Ellery is the next to disappear and Malcolm is blamed for this crime. I though McManus' first novel was just about a perfect mystery, but this one is even better. I had no idea who the killer or killers would be, and I loved Ellery and Malcolm as they struggled to sift through the facts. This mystery is going to go viral! Highly recommended! |
AuthorMs. Smith has been the librarian at Washington HS in Sioux Falls, SD, since 2005. She enjoys reading, watching K-Dramas, Harry Potter and hanging out with her family. Archives
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