Review: The Accidental Beauty Queen by Teri Wilson

Title: The Accidental Beauty Queen 

Author:  Teri Wilson
Publisher: Gallery Books

Publishing Date:  December 4th, 2018

Pages: 304
Genre: Adult Contemporary Romance, Chic Lit

Series:  Stand Alone
Source:  Audio

 

Charlotte Gorman loves her job as an elementary school librarian, and is content to experience life through the pages of her books. Which couldn’t be more opposite from her identical twin sister. Ginny, an Instagram-famous beauty pageant contestant, has been chasing a crown since she was old enough to enunciate the words world peace, and she’s not giving up until she gets the title of Miss American Treasure. And Ginny’s refusing to do it alone this time.
She drags Charlotte to the pageant as a good luck charm, but the winning plan quickly goes awry when Ginny has a terrible, face-altering allergic reaction the night before the pageant, and Charlotte suddenly finds herself in a switcheroo the twins haven’t successfully pulled off in decades.
Woefully unprepared for the glittery world of hair extensions, false eyelashes, and push-up bras, Charlotte is mortified at every unstable step in her sky-high stilettos. But as she discovers there’s more to her fellow contestants than just wanting a sparkly crown, Charlotte realizes she has a whole new motivation for winning.

I was perusing through E Galleys one day and found this book. It sounded very cute and I just loved the cover. I have been attempting to add chic lit and adult contemporary romances to my library of books and decided this should be a good one to start with. It really was. I really really enjoyed this book. It has some great laugh moments, some tearful moments, feel good moments, and book nerd moments. I loved the characters and I adored the story. It was just fun. A great read. 

Charlotte is a down to earth librarian and quite a book nerd ( which comes with the territory of a librarian I supposed. She has a nice quiet life and does enjoy it. Her twin sister, Ginny, is a pageant girl who is trying to follow in their late mother's footsteps. Ginny is after the most important crown in her life. The day before it all starts, she has an allergic reaction. Instead of quitting and going home, she has Charlotte to step in and pretend to be her. With lots of training Ginny is sure Charlotte can pull this off. Charlotte isn't so sure. During the training, the dolling up, Charlotte starts to enjoy herself and has some fun...she also finds herself in a web of lies that will hurt everyone involved. 

This book truly was amazing. I was hooked from the very start and just couldn't put it down throughout the entire read. I loved the characters, the story, the romance. Oh the romance. That was so fun and swoony. I really can't think of anything I didn't enjoy about this read. 

Charlotte was a great main character. I adored how much of a book nerd she was and really just felt so connected to her from the beginning through this passion of hers. She was very down to earth, even if she did have a few hang ups in her personality, I found she was very easy to love. She didn't always make the right decisions and did find herself making some selfish decisions even though she really didn't want to. She really just wanted to make her sister happy. 

Ginny wasn't my favorite character but she added so much depth and realism to the story. She was a bit obsessed but I did find the reason for the obsession of beauty pageants to be understandable and I felt for her wanting to follow in her mother's footsteps. She was quited good with the entire pageant thing too. She did have some growing to do and of course in the end I loved her as much as I loved Charlotte. 

I think what I really loved about this story was the story of sisterhood and family. I always love family drama and family bonding over any other relationships in books. I find them to be heartwarming and heartwarming this book was... with a few laughs for good measure. 

The writing was just wonderful and the setting was done so well I feel I know so much more about beauty pageants now. I really didn't realize how much was put in to them. I also appreciated the emphasis on the fact these pageants were also about inner beauty and positive body love. Not just trying to be the  most beautiful, but trying to the most as a woman. 

The romance in this book was really something good. The love interest was just so perfect and lovable and swoony. I am not a huge straight on romance kind of girl and I felt the romance in this book was just right for me to be down with the idea. It wasn't the focus but there wasn't a lack of either. It was just right. 

The ending was beautiful and yes I shed a couple of tears and found myself to just be smiling ear to ear wishing I could continue their story. I will miss these characters dearly. 

A great read for those that love a good heartwarming, sister bonding, swoony romance, book full of crazy antics kind of read. 

Teri Wilson is the author/creator of the Hallmark Channel Original Movies UNLEASHING MR. DARCY, MARRYING MR. DARCY, THE ART OF US and NORTHERN LIGHTS OF CHRISTMAS, based on her book SLEIGH BELL SWEETHEARTS. She is a double finalist for the prestigious RITA Award for excellence in romantic fiction for her novels THE PRINCESS PROBLEM and ROYALLY WED. She has a major weakness for cute animals, pretty dresses and Audrey Hepburn films, and she loves following the British royal family. Visit her at www.teriwilson.net or on Twitter @TeriWilsonauthr.

Review: Scarlett Epstein Hates It Here by Anna Breslaw

Title: Scarlett Epstein Hates It Here 

Author:  Anna Breslaw
Publisher: Razorbill

Publishing Date: April 19th 2016

Pages: 288
Genre:  YA Chic Lit

Series:  Stand Alone
Source: Hardcover

 

Meet Scarlett Epstein, BNF (Big Name Fan) in her online community of fanfiction writers, world-class nobody at Melville High. Her best (read: only) IRL friends are Avery, a painfully shy and annoyingly attractive bookworm, and Ruth, her weed-smoking, possibly insane seventy-three-year-old neighbor.

When Scarlett’s beloved TV show is canceled and her longtime crush, Gideon, is sucked out of her orbit and into the dark and distant world of Populars, Scarlett turns to the fanfic message boards for comfort. This time, though, her subjects aren’t the swoon-worthy stars of her fave series—they’re the real-life kids from her high school. And if they ever find out what Scarlett truly thinks about them, she’ll be thrust into a situation far more dramatic than anything she’s ever seen on TV…

This was a very cute book. A very fast read and a real feel good book. It was funny, it was serious, it was crazy. It entertained me and I enjoyed it. 

Scarlett Epstein has some isuses and she needs to find a way to deal with them. So she finds ways to deal with them online more than in real life. She does have some some pretty awwesome friends even if they aren't the usual high school type friends. But they do help her through her issues. This book is about Scarlett and her journey. 

This was a good book. It was funny and it was serious and I liked that. There were some pretty deep issues that were dealt with but nothing that was really hard to get through. The cast of characters were great and thier issues were real. There were definitely laughs and a few teary eyed moments on this read. 

I liked Scarlett. She was a great main character, She had attitude but didn't always know where or when to use it. She has a lot of built up issues inside her but she has very few people to talk to them about. She has a very quiet best friend, a crazy pothead elderly neighbor, and her ex best friend who dropped her and is now kind of in her life again. So this is her life and she deals with it as best as she can....with a very snarky overactive mind, or online where no knows her real life. Most thoughts she keeps to herself... but on occasion she stands up for herself and lets loose. This is when she rocked for sure. 

The relationships really are what makes this a great read. There are a bazillion types of relationships here from parents to teachers to neighbors and friends. Online and in real life. Its really great. I loved her neighbor and her online buddies. They were the most fun and stood out to me the most. I do think all the relationships were very important in this book. 

The book touches on show many issues and how teens handle them. Scarlett wasn't always the smartest and made some bad decisions but she dealt with the bad decisions responsibly... if that makes sense. It was a book about loss, anger, forgivness, finding one's true self, standing up for oneself, and so much more. 

Great read for teens.. as it deals with many teen issues and I feel it was more honest to real teen life then most YA books. Great read for adults who still like to laugh about what a teen life seemed like and really was. Great read for comtemporary lovers. It's just a great read. 

I approved, I laughed, I cried... just a tiny. I enjoyed. 

email: annabreslaw@gmail.com twitter: annabreslaw

Website http://www.annabreslaw.tumblr.com

Review: Summer of Sloane by Erin L. Schneider

Title: Summer of Sloane

Author:  Erin L. Schneider
Publisher: Disney Hyperion

Publishing Date: May 3rd 2016

Pages: 291
Genre: YA Contemporary Chic Lit

Series:  Stand Alone
Source: ARC 

 

Warm Hawaiian sun. Lazy beach days. Flirty texts with her boyfriend back in Seattle.

These are the things seventeen-year-old Sloane McIntyre pictured when she imagined the summer she’d be spending at her mom’s home in Hawaii with her twin brother, Penn. Instead, after learning an unthinkable secret about her boyfriend, Tyler, and best friend, Mick, all she has is a fractured hand and a completely shattered heart.

Once she arrives in Honolulu, though, Sloane hopes that Hawaii might just be the escape she needs. With beach bonfires, old friends, exotic food, and the wonders of a waterproof cast, there’s no reason Sloane shouldn’t enjoy her summer. And when she meets Finn McAllister, the handsome son of a hotel magnate who doesn’t always play by the rules, she knows he’s the perfect distraction from everything that’s so wrong back home.

But it turns out a measly ocean isn’t nearly enough to stop all the emails, texts, and voicemails from her ex-boyfriend and ex-best friend, desperate to explain away their betrayal. And as her casual connection with Finn grows deeper, Sloane’s carefree summer might not be as easy to find as she’d hoped. Weighing years of history with Mick and Tyler against their deception, and the delicate possibility of new love, Sloane must decide when to forgive, and when to live for herself.

I am going to be honest. The cover drew me in and the cover is what made me read this book. The title is pretty cool too. I am not always in the mood for contemporary and it's prbably what I read the least but I just had to read this one. Look at that cover. I loved loved loved this book. It was so much more than I had anticipated and I could just gush all over it for a very long time. Its a story full of betrayal, hurt, loss, forgiveness, inner growth, redemption, and moving on. It was so so good. Really it was guys. So good. 

Sloane had a pretty good life until her forever best friend told her she was pregnant, and the father was Sloane's boyfriend. This throws Sloane's life into an upheavel. She lost both her best friend and her boyfriend... all in one night. This was right before heading to Hawaii to visit her mother for the Summer. Once in Hawaii, Sloane decides this will be her summer. All about her and moving on. She finds frienship, family loyalty, family secrets, love, and in all of it her way in life and of course forgiveness. 

This was such a great book. I wil admit that I generally really stay away from books that have the subject of cheating. I just don't like it and I hate that it's in books. I mean I hate that it happens so it's talked about in books. Its always such a hard thing to go through and get over. Its a strong betrayal and it casuses so many different feelings. It's never just one sided and it's always deeper than it seems. It's a very sensitive subject. So I went into this book thinking I will see how it goes. It got tons of good reviews and I just love the cover. So  I had to read it. 

I must say this book handled the subject surpremely. What I loved... this book was about the after effects, the hurt involved, and how bitterness can take over if you allow it too. Mistakes are made and no matter who is right or wrong...everyone involved is hurt. The issue isn't the cheating in this book, the issue at hand is how you choose to deal with it once it happens. I liked that becuase it wasn't dwelled on. The actual affair... the feelings and moving on is what it was about. 

Sloane was a character I connected to and fell for right away. I felt bad for her. It was hard. In this siutation I just couldn't see how she could have done anything to encourage or prevent or even have a clue it was an issue. It was crazy. She was so devestated and angry. She chose to move on and found it, it's not as easy to do as to say. She has to discover herself and what loyalty and real love is in order to forgive and move on. What is more important your loved ones mistakes or how they feel and admit to those mistakes afterwards. Sloane was sensitive but strong. She amazed me. 

The romance in the book was okay. It wasn't the focus and I felt that. I felt it was a bit out of place at times but it was still sweet and nice. I did like the love interest, Finn. He felt real and geninue and I enjoyed his story too. He was also troubled and had some devestating things in his past.... not to mention a very cold father. So he was good for Sloane but I think Sloane was better for him.  

I enjoyed the friendship, the family, and the inner growth of this book. It had so much to offer. I felt moved, I cried, I wanted to just hug Sloane one moment and yell at her the next for making the wrong choices. She did make some bad choices but they never felt unwarranted. She was young and hurt and needed to heal. In the healing time she couldn't see beyond the anger and hurt.. so her decisions were understandble. 

The pacing and the writing were just perfect. Fast but not too fast pacing, everything fell into place beautfully. The writing was stunning and I just couldn't get enough of this read. 

It really was a very moving read. 

I really loved this read. It had so much deep and overcoming to it. Can't wait to see what more this author does.

Erin L. Schneider is native to the Pacific Northwest, attended college in Honolulu, and - although Hawaiian - should never be allowed on a surfboard. With more than twenty years in corporate merchandising, she’s now a full-time writer living in Seattle with her husband, Neal; their baby boy, Kellan; a rowdy German shepherd named Ronin; and two crazy cats, Ono and Poke. She’s a member of both the Pacific Northwest Writers Association and SCBWI, and is also co-founder of the YA Buccaneers. 
SUMMER OF SLOANE is her debut novel, out May 3, 2016 from Disney-Hyperion. Visit Erin online at Erin L Schneider or on Twitter: @ErinLSchneider1.
Erin is represented by literary agent Lisa Grubka of Fletcher & Company.

Review: Seven Ways We Lie by Riley Redgate

Title:  Seven Ways We Lie 

Author: Riley Redgate

Publisher: Amulet Books 

Publishing Date: March 8th 2016

Pages: 352
Genre: YA Contemporary/Chic Lit/Realistic Fiction

Series: Stand Alone
Source:  ARC 

 

Paloma High School is ordinary by anyone’s standards. It’s got the same cliques, the same prejudices, the same suspect cafeteria food. And like every high school, every student has something to hide—whether it’s Kat, the thespian who conceals her trust issues onstage; or Valentine, the neurotic genius who’s planted the seed of a school scandal.

When that scandal bubbles over, and rumors of a teacher-student affair surface, everyone starts hunting for someone to blame. For the unlikely allies at the heart of it all, the collision of their seven ordinary-seeming lives results in extraordinary change.

This book was an interesting read. I went into this book looking for a mystery and the seven deadly sins. This is not what I got. What I did get was a story about 7 teenagers that share a secret, their lives and other secrets, and some relationship issues. It was good. I enjoyed it. I think it would be more enjoyable for teens and not adults who read young adult books. It however was not a waste of my time, I did enjoy it and really no regrets. 

There is a high school. There is a scandal. There are 6 teenagers and a teacher. There are issues with sexuality, friendship, drugs, drinking, family, and more. These teens are friends, classmates, family. They are popular, smart, well liked, loners, and misunderstood. They are all different but they all lie to protect themselves or someone else. This is a book about their lies and what becomes of them when the lies become truths.

So this book was completely not what I expected. I don't know why I suspected it would be different,t he summary is right on. I either read it and don't remember, confused it with a different book, or the synopsis was changed after I first read about it. I am not sure but I didn't go into this read with the right expectations.

This book did surprise me though. I was surprised I was able to get through it and enjoy it for the most part. I normally don't do the high  school issues, , teen issues, and realistic issues in a drama filled book. It was a bit angst but not overly done. The issues were real and I see them in the real world so that is good. It think its a good book for high school aged teens.

What I liked... 

The characters. More the guys than the girls. I did like Lucas, Matt, and Valentine. The girls.. not so much. The guys seemed to have it a bit more together. Olivia was one girl I did like. She was flawed but strong. She wasn't always the best friend. She was clueless at times about her friends but she did stand by them.

I liked the issues. They seemed to be real things kids are struggling or could be struggling with these days. They are completely different issues then I remember seeing as a teen, but they do exist now and its nice when they are touched on.

I liked the relationship aspects. The friendships and the dating. They were more realistic. There were ups and downs. They weren't all yes the best person ever and they are just perfect. There were times they didn't like each other and times they loved each other.

I liked the writing. The writing was well done. I did keep turning the pages and wanted to know what the heck was going on. I did enjoy getting to know the characters even though I didn't like some of them. They all had their own voice.

The ending.... It was sweet and nice.


What I didn't like...

The girl characters. They were a bit angsty, whiny, dumb.  The others just got on my every last nerve. Again, teens may relate, adults not so much. It's hard to relate when you are not there anymore. Been a long time since I was a teen and I hate to admit I was just as angsty whiny and dumb.

The family aspect. It had the parents never involved syndrome and that really bugs me. Not all parents are absent parents. Lets put a mix into the story. Some absent some really involved. That is always nice to see. In this book, they were all absent, horrible, always fighting and yelling parents.

The ending- yes I know I said I liked the ending, which I did... but it was also too nicely wrapped. Usually this doesn't bother me. The only reason it bothers me in this book... The kids were all messed up so much and to have it all okay and fixed so short and abrupt at the end did not match the story.... but it was still sweet and nice.

I think what I liked most about this book was that it's written for teens with teens in mind for the audience and it will be a book they may love and need in their life. What I disliked the most about this book.... same thing... and I am not a teen. SO my rating is going more for... yes I enjoyed it. Not my favorite but I can appreciate who the book was targeting. For its target audience It's great.

It was good read. Although I enjoyed it. It could have been better for me, but for some it will be just their thing. 

Hey, hi. Riley here. I am a(n):
—YA novelist—Shark enthusiast—Economics major at Kenyon—ECON IS FUN I PROMISE—Okay—Also a classical pianist & singer-songwriter—I am a human person comprised primarily of soft tissue, and by golly, I hazard a guess you are, too. we have so much in common.—So look, when I was like 15, someone messaged me on fanfiction dot net telling me that the "sheer amount of stupid" on my profile guaranteed that they would never read my work—Clearly, I have not learned my lesson—I hope you're having a really good day!—Bye!

Review: Proof of Forever by Lexa Hillyer

Title: Proof of Forever

Author: Lexa Hillyer
Publisher: HarperCollins

Publishing Date: June 2nd 2015

Pages: 352
Genre: YA Chic Lit/Magical Realism

Series:  Stand Alone
Source: Audio

 

Before: It was the perfect summer of first kisses, skinny-dipping, and bonfires by the lake. Joy, Tali, Luce, and Zoe knew their final summer at Camp Okahatchee would come to an end, but they swore they’d stay friends.

After: Now, two years later, their bond has faded along with those memories.

Then: That is, until the fateful flash of a photo booth camera transports the four of them back in time, to the summer they were fifteen—the summer everything changed.

Now: The girls must recreate the past in order to return to the present. As they live through their second-chance summer, the mystery behind their lost friendship unravels, and a dark secret threatens to tear the girls apart all over again.

Always: Summers end. But this one will change them forever.

I was really excited for this book.  I head good things about it and just knew I had to read it. A chic lit with magical realism of time traveling. Basically that is the only way I can describe it. I liked it well enough. I enjoyed it, but it fell a bit short of my expectations.I am not sure why. I think it just had to much hype before I read it and it just didn't quite wow me as I had hoped.

Four girls, a friendship, two years of separation, love lost between the girls. One girl, the one that started the entire separation, comes back wanting to reunite the girls at the camp they all loved and cherished. The camp they spent summer after summer together. So they get together some on purpose some on accident. In a photo booth they take a picture together. and instead of getting a picture they get the past. Two years in the past, the last summer at camp that they spent as friends. Now they rush to to do what they need to.. make everything as it was that last night so they can get back to the present. Along they way they discover their first love again, discover new love, discover themselves, family secrets and their friendship all over again. 

Okay so what I liked about the book. The story was nice. It was very chic lit, which I love. It was very self discovery, friends discovery, strength discovery, truth discovery, and so on. I like this kind of stuff.  It feels empowering and it worked well for this story. It had enough tear jerking, laughing, oh, and I knew moments to keep the story good. 

The style of writing. I liked that it was told from all  four girls narratives. I liked getting into each one of their head and I liked that beyond the main story there were four separate stories going on. 

I like the characters good enough.They were all realistic in having their strengths and their flaws. Some annoyed me more than others. I didn't get along as well with Tali. She kind of rubbed me the wrong way, she was selfish. Zoe kind of annoyed me at times, a little too bullheaded. I liked Joy from the beginning. She felt sincere and sweet. I liked Luce for most of the story. There were times I felt she was a bit to naive. So Here is the short of it when it comes tot he characters. They all had things that made me mad but in the end I felt I knew them better for their flaws, felt their struggles, and enjoyed their journey. They all grew quite a bit by the end and that was what made me like the story the most. I love journey and growth that is what chic lit is all about. 

So here is where the story fell short for me. 

The pacing. I was really into the book, then it bored me, then I was really into the book, then it bored me. So there there times it was a bit slow. It took a while to really grab my attention too. I almost gave up on it in the beginning. Glad I didn't though. 

The ending was good, a tearjerker, emotional, heartwarming, but I didn't like that the past was wrapped up in happy endings the second time around but the present not so much. It was wrapped up but not really resolved. I can't say too much but there was a resolution for each girl but then there wasn't. There and gone. Yes there was an end goal that was met but it just wasn't quite enough for me. 

Now all this said, I did like it. I didn't oh my goodness love it but  I liked it and I really did enjoy it.

Time traveling wasn't really a big deal in this book. It's more a contemporary read with a bit of magic realism that happens twice in the entire book. So I would not classify this as a sci fi by any means. If you are looking for a great time traveling, multi universe book with lots of sci fi stuff. Not it. This really is a chic lit read. 

I liked it, I enjoyed it, I would recommend if you like chic lit.

I'm the author of Proof of Forever, and the poetry collection Acquainted with the Cold, which won the 2012 Foreword Book of the Year Award's Gold Prize for Poetry. I'm also the co-founder of literary incubator Paper Lantern Lit. My poetry was anthologized in Best New Poets 2012, and appears in several journals. I live in Carroll Gardens with an extremely lovable husband and a very skinny orange tree. Follow me on instagram @ProofOfLex and twitter @Lexa_Hillyer !