Saving June by Hannah Harrington

Title: Saving June
Author: Hannah Harrington
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Publication Date: November 11, 2011
Source: Thanks to Harlequin Teen Panel
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Summary: ‘If she’d waited less than two weeks, she’d be June who died in June. But I guess my sister didn't consider that.’

Harper Scott’s older sister has always been the perfect one so when June takes her own life a week before her high school graduation, sixteen-year-old Harper is devastated. Everyone’s sorry, but no one can explain why.

When her divorcing parents decide to split her sister’s ashes into his-and-her urns, Harper takes matters into her own hands. She’ll steal the ashes and drive cross-country with her best friend, Laney, to the one place June always dreamed of going, California.

Enter Jake Tolan. He’s a boy with a bad attitude, a classic-rock obsession and nothing in common with Harper’s sister. But Jake had a connection with June, and when he insists on joining them, Harper’s just desperate enough to let him. With his alternately charming and infuriating demeanour and his belief that music can see you through anything, he might be exactly what she needs.

Except June wasn’t the only one hiding something. Jake’s keeping a secret that has the power to turn Harper’s life upside down again.
Review: I'd planned on getting Saving June from the library one day but then it showed up unexpectedly in my mailbox. I jumped on the chance to read it as soon as I got it. Saving June is a harder read, considering the subject manner, but it is also an extremely powerful one.  

The two elements of the story that stand out the most are Harper and the music. Harper is someone I instantly liked. She'd already gone through a lot before her sister committed suicide and even before you finish the first couple of chapters you can see how hard this has hit Harper. The only thing I really didn't like about Harper was that she was made out to be kind of a rebel and I didn't think that was shown very well. Otherwise, she was a well-developed character that had a dry sense of humor that made me smile throughout the book. 

The way music was incorporated into this book was wonderful. I'm not a huge music fan, well at least a current music fan. I'm more into the oldies so I loved how older music was brought into the conversation. Jake, one of my favorite side characters, has an odd obsession with ABBA that I loved, mainly because Harper teased him about it so often. Jake is such a sweet guy. Like Harper, he is in no way perfect but I still loved reading about his intricate relationship with Harper and her sister June. 

Usually I'm a huge fan of road trips and this book was no exception. It definitely wasn't a usual road trip but it was a memorable one considering all the odd places Harper, Jake and Laney went during the course of Saving June. 

Saving June manages the heavier topics expertly but also manages to make the reader smile. This is a debut that I would recommend for everyone. 

Rating:

Masters of the Veil by Daniel A. Cohen

Title: Masters of the Veil
Author: Daniel A. Cohen
Publisher: Spencer Hill Press
Publication Date: March 1, 2012
Source: Thanks Dan and Kate!
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Summary: Life can't get much better for Sam Lock. Popular, good-looking, and with a future as a professional football player. every guy at Stanton High School wishes he were Sam. That is, until his championship football game, when Sam accidentally links with an ancient source of energy known as the Veil and reveals his potential to become a powerful sorcerer.Sam is whisked off to Atlas Crown, a community of sorcerers who utilize the Veil as a part of everyday life. Once there, he trains beside a mute boy who speaks through music, an eternal sage who's the eyes and ears of the Veil, and a beautiful girl who's pretty sure Sam's an idiot.As it becomes clear Sam's meant for power magic-the most feared and misunderstood form of sorcery-people beyond Atlas Crown learn of his dangerous potential. An exiled group of power sorcerers are eager to recruit Sam, believing that he is destined to help them achieve their long-held goal. If they succeed, they could bring about the downfall of not only Atlas Crown. But all humankind.


Review: Masters of the Veil is a fantastic book that shows that there can be so many new original things still to be discovered in the genre of fantasy. Cohen does a great job with this one!


Sam is such a fun guy! He wasn't the easiest to connect with-a problem I've been having lately-but that didn't mean that I didn't like him. He was such a pleasure to read about. He definitely developed a lot during the book. I enjoyed being there for his crazy sorcerer journey.


The supporting characters were pretty good. I loved the vast variety of them and just the different personalities of them. Some were a bit two-dimensional but I still loved them!


Like I said before, the fantasy is fantastic! There's tons of information packed into Masters of the Veil, the first in the trilogy. It could be a little overwhelming at times but you just have to get used to the flow of information. Then it gets enjoyable.


Overall, Masters of the Veil is a fun book that never fails to be interesting. This is definitely one for the fantasy lovers!


Rating: 3.5 stars

Mini Review: Goddess Interrupted by Aimee Carter

Today I'm doing a little "mini review" on a book I read recently and really liked!

Goddess Interrupted by Aimee Carter

Publishing on March 27, 2012 by Harlequin Teen

My Source: Harlequin Teen Panel

Kate Winters has won immortality. 

But if she wants a life in the Underworld with Henry, she’ll have to fight for it. 

Becoming immortal wasn’t supposed to be the easy part. Though Kate is about to be crowned Queen of the Underworld, she’s as isolated as ever. And despite her growing love for Henry, ruler of the Underworld, he’s becoming ever more distant and secretive. Then, in the midst of Kate’s coronation, Henry is abducted by the only being powerful enough to kill him: the King of the Titans. 

As the other gods prepare for a war that could end them all, it is up to Kate to save Henry from the depths of Tartarus. But in order to navigate the endless caverns of the Underworld, Kate must enlist the help of the one person who is the greatest threat to her future. 

Henry’s first wife, Persephone.

Mini Review: Goddess Interrupted, the second book in The Goddess Test series, is a must read for fans  of the first book.

I loved The Goddess Test so I was more then a little excited to read this one! My only complainant about this one is the slow start. It took me awhile to get back into the book and into the character's minds again. But other than that minor complainant this turned out to be a great read!

Kate, the main character, is as feisty as ever. There were a few moments when I really wanted to slap some sense into her but she surprised me quite a few times during the book. Kate is such a strong character.

That ENDING was so intense and it really just blew me away. The ending of Goddess Interrupted almost makes up for the slow start in the beginning.

Goddess Interrupted is a fun, sometimes deep, read that is definitely worth picking up!