The Springsweet by Saundra Mitchell

Review of The Springsweet

Title & Author:
The Springsweet by Saundra Mitchell
Publisher:
Harcourt Children’s
Publication Date:
April 15, 2012
Pages:
275
Source:
ARC from Lynn, purchased finished copy

Heartbroken over the tragic death of her fiancé, seventeen-year-old Zora Stewart leaves Baltimore for the frontier town of West Glory, Oklahoma, to help her young widowed aunt keep her homestead going. There she discovers that she possesses the astonishing ability to sense water under the parched earth. When her aunt hires her out as a “springsweet” to advise other settlers where to dig their wells, Zora feels the burden of holding the key to something so essential to survival in this unforgiving land. Even more, she finds herself longing for love the way the prairie thirsts for water. Maybe, in the wildness of the territories, Zora can finally move beyond simply surviving and start living. – Goodreads

I read The Springsweet by Saundra Mitchell several months ago and I still can’t get over how amazing it was.

If you’ve read The Vespertine, you know how beautiful Saundra Mitchell’s writing truly is – and The Springsweet was even better. I mean, my biggest complaint with The Vespertine was that I wanted to know more about what happened to Zora, and voila, a whole book about Zora!

I loved Zora Stewart. I may or may not have loved her more than Amelia, I plead the fifth. I just thought Zora was amazing and going through so many hard things yet still managed to awesome. And her elemental power things were super cool, and helpful to the community she lived in.

Also, I loved the setting! Old western, Little House on the Prairie like times? Sign me up! I thought Saundra Mitchell described the setting and reflected the emotion of the time beautifully.

Seriously – if you’re looking for a beautiful historical fiction with paranormal elements, here you go! The Vespertine and The Springsweet by Saundra Mitchell are some of my favourite books that I’ve read in the past few years, and I am dying to read Aetherborne.

Other books in the series

The Vespertine by Saundra Mitchell

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Revived by Cat Patrick

Review of Revived

Title & Author:
Revived by Cat Patrick
Publisher:
Little Brown
Publication Date:
May 08, 2012
Pages:
336
Source:
Southern Book Bloggers

As a little girl, Daisy Appleby was killed in a school bus crash. Moments after the accident, she was brought back to life.

A secret government agency has developed a drug called Revive that can bring people back from the dead, and Daisy Appleby, a test subject, has been Revived five times in fifteen years. Daisy takes extraordinary risks, knowing that she can beat death, but each new death also means a new name, a new city, and a new life. When she meets Matt McKean, Daisy begins to question the moral implications of Revive, and as she discovers the agency’s true goals, she realizes she’s at the center of something much larger—and more sinister—than she ever imagined. – Goodreads

I hadn’t read Cat Patrick’s first book, Forgotten, so I wasn’t really sure what to expect from Revived. But the concept sounded pretty awesome, so I gave it a shot.

And man, I am so glad I did! Revived by Cat Patrick is legit. I was surprised by how hooked I got! Revived wasn’t really something I expected to pick up and wanted to keep reading until I finished, but Daisy dug her claws in. Revived definitely has a unique concept for YA and I loved the science aspect of it all, plus I got super giddy during some romantic bits.

I loved the plot of Revived by Cat Patrick. It was mysterious and dealt with some heavy science. I loved Daisy and her indecisive loyalty and her attempts to figure out what exactly is going on.

And Daisy. I loved Daisy in general, and her first real friends, Matt and Audrey. Speaking of which, Matt is a GREAT name for a first love because I know a ton of people (including myself) who first fell for a guy named Matt. But that’s beside the point. I loved Daisy and Matt together, and I loved Daisy and Audrey’s friendship – and man, did I cry while reading Revived.

Seriously – if you’re looking for a fun sci-fiish book with giddy romance and beautiful friendships, go check out Revived by Cat Patrick. It’s a quick read and thoroughly engaging.

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Until I Die by Amy Plum

Review of Until I Die

Title & Author:
Until I Die by Amy Plum
Publisher:
HarperCollins
Publication Date:
May 08, 2012
Pages:
357
Source:
Giselle

Kate and Vincent have overcome the odds and at last they are together in Paris, the city of lights and love.

As their romance deepens there’s one question they can’t ignore: How are they supposed to be together if Vincent can’t resist sacrificing himself to save others? Although Vincent promises that he’ll do whatever it takes to lead a normal life with Kate, will that mean letting innocent people die? When a new and surprising enemy reveals itself, Kate realizes that even more may be at stake—and that Vincent’s immortality is in jeopardy.

In Die for Me, Amy Plum created a captivating paranormal mythology with immortal revenants and a lush Paris setting. Until I Die is poised to thrill readers with more heart-pounding suspense, spellbinding romance, and a cliff-hanger ending that will leave them desperate for the third and final novel in the series. – Goodreads

I read Die for Me by Amy Plum on a long plane ride back from London, and I didn’t enjoy it as much as I wanted to. But I picked up Until I Die anyway, mainly because hello, it takes place in Paris!

And guys, I have to say – I got so into Until I Die! I thought it was so much better than Die For Me, perhaps because I wasn’t stuck in an uncomfortable seat thousands of miles in the air.

I was way more impressed with Kate in Until I Die. She was determined and strong and she wanted to solve things for herself, rather than wait around for people to tell her what to do, which I loved. I always admire protagonists that refuse to be doormats just because they love a boy.

There were some bits of Until I Die which dragged on a bit, in terms of all the information given at one time, but the story itself (not to mention how proud I was of Kate for figuring things out) definitely pushed me through that.

The romance was much more believable to me in Until I Die as well. Perhaps because I wasn’t watching them fall for each other, but just seeing them together was a different experience. A better one, I thought.

Can I just ask – am I the only person who finds that they want the protagonists to get together with someone totally different than the love interest? And I don’t mean in a love triangle this is supposed to be hard kind of way, I just mean a random friend and I’m like SHE SHOULD GET TOGETHER WITH HIM! In the case of Until I Die, I’m referring to Jules. But I think this usually happens to me with paranormal romances.

But anyway. If you found yourself on the fence with Die For Me – or if you loved it – I highly recommend picking up Until I Die by Amy Plum. I enjoyed it so much more than the first – Until I Die was full of action and twists and a headstrong protagonist, not to mention a gorgeous setting.

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Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson

Review of Second Chance Summer

Title & Author:
Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson
Publisher:
Simon & Schuster
Publication Date:
May 08, 2012
Pages:
480
Source:
Purchased

Taylor’s family might not be the closest-knit – everyone is a little too busy and overscheduled – but for the most part, they get along fine. Then they get news that changes everything: Her father has pancreatic cancer, and it’s stage four – meaning that there is basically nothing to be done. Her parents decide that the family will spend his last months together at their old summerhouse in the Pocono Mountains.

Crammed into a place much smaller and more rustic than they are used to, they begin to get to know each other again. And Taylor discovers that the people she thought she had left behind haven’t actually gone anywhere. Her former summer best friend is suddenly around, as is her first boyfriend. . . and he’s much cuter at seventeen than he was at twelve.

As the summer progresses, the Edwards become more of a family, and closer than they’ve ever been before. But all of them very aware that they’re battling a ticking clock. Sometimes, though, there is just enough time to get a second chance – with family, with friends, and with love. – Goodreads

This book broke me.

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Unbreak My Heart by Melissa Walker

Review of Unbreak My Heart

Title & Author:
Unbreak My Heart by Melissa Walker
Publisher:
Bloomsbury
Publication Date:
May 01, 2012
Pages:
240
Source:
NetGalley

Sophomore year broke Clementine Williams’ heart. She fell for her best friend’s boyfriend and long story short: he’s excused, but Clem is vilified and she heads into summer with zero social life. Enter her parents’ plan to spend the summer on their sailboat. Normally the idea of being stuck on a tiny boat with her parents and little sister would make Clem break out in hives, but floating away sounds pretty good right now. Then she meets James at one of their first stops along the river. He and his dad are sailing for the summer and he’s just the distraction Clem needs. Can he break down Clem’s walls and heal her broken heart? Told in alternating chapters that chronicle the year that broke Clem’s heart and the summer that healed it, Unbreak My Heart is a wonderful dual love story that fans of Sarah Dessen, Deb Caletti, and Susane Colasanti will flock to. – Goodreads

I loved Unbreak My Heart by Melissa Walker. The story was unbelievably touching and I loved the uniqueness of the setting.

For a YA book about cheating, I loved the way Unbreak My Heart was told. We knew from the beginning, or rather we learned in bits and pieces, what exactly happened, and so were able to understand the main character, Clementine, much better than we would have if we were just thrown into the middle of all the drama. There were a few journal entries scattered throughout Unbreak My Heart that I thought also added to the story.

The family dynamics in Unbreak My Heart were awesome. I love to read about different families and I thought it was so cool how Clementine, her sister, and her parents interacted each other, especially on the small boat. It was great to see Clementine start to open up to her family and have fun again. And her sister, gah. I just loved how her sister always looked up to Clem and wanted to hang out with her.

The setting in Unbreak My Heart was one of the coolest I’ve read about in a while. I love the idea of taking off on a boat up the coast for a summer. They stopped at all these cool towns and met a lot of really unique people, like James! I loved James so much – and his story really fit with Clementine’s.

I wasn’t totally satisfied with the ending of Unbreak My Heart. I mean, I totally appreciate Melissa Walker for not completely wrapping everything up with a tidy ribbon, but Unbreak My Heart was one of those books where I wanted more. I wanted everything spelled out for me and perfect, you know? So it’s not a BAD ending or anything, I was just left wanting to know more.

Guys, despite my ending woes, Unbreak My Heart is moving and relatable and fun. I loved Melissa Walker‘s Small Town Sinner, and after Unbreak My Heart, I can’t wait to see what she cooks up next!

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