Mandy

MandySeventeen-year-old Stella was diagnosed with CF when she was six-years-old. She is a patient at Saint Grace’s Hospital with her best friend Poe, who also has cystic fibrosis. CF is a life-threatening disorder that produces thick and sticky fluids that block passageways to the lungs and other organs. Although there is no cure, there are some treatments that can lessen symptoms. Both Stella and Poe have been in and out of the hospital since their childhood due to CF, so this has allowed the two to become very close friends (figuratively speaking). It is a huge risk for people with CF to be in close proximity to each other because they could worsen symptoms or spread harmful bacteria that could further harm each other. Stella and Will have a budding romance that is more or less like a modern-day Romeo and Juliet. Even though this is a young adult novel, I was completely invested in the story of these two star-crossed lovers. Their story was a real tear-jerker at times, but the message between the lines was so hopeful and pulled at my heart. Stella pushes her boundaries with Will stating that CF has stolen so much from her life, she’s decided to steal back 12 inches. She and Will decide they will use a 5ft pool cue to keep a safe distance between them while they spend time together. I highly recommend this book to anyone that can brave the tears that come along with this story. You will ride a rollercoaster of emotions throughout this easy read, but I guarantee this is a book you will not want to put down. Throughout the story you explore how three different individuals living with CF experience life. While all three of them have similar struggles, the way the deal with their diagnoses could not be more different. The more they experience together, the more of an influence they have on their acceptance and how they fight for their lives.

MandyMy final reread from the series and my final ‘more than you asked for’ in depth review for the final installment of The Summer I Turned Pretty series. I am going to start off by saying that I do not understand how the author was able to build up such a loving and supportive character over the first two books, only to have him turn into a completely different and unrecognizable human in the third and final book. Although it was hard to wrap my mind around how the author ignores all of the character development of Belly, Conrad, and Jere, I did enjoy reading how the story ends. Without giving too much away, Belly and Jeremiah are in college together and have been dating since the end of the second book. They seem to be a happy couple, but they still struggle to communicate to each other what they are feeling in the moment. Young love has its challenges and obstacles, but Jere and Belly start to face some pretty big scenarios that need to be addressed, and instead of communicating with each other, they choose to sweep their issues under the rug and discuss the idea of getting married in a few short months. When they share the news, it goes exactly how you’d picture breaking the news to their families. You follow both Belly and Jeremiah while they try to navigate wedding planning while still in college and without the support of their families and friends. I did really enjoy the series, but overall, I felt let down by the final book. Overall, I do recommend reading the books. Although personally I am not a fan of how the story was concluded, I think it is necessary to read the final book in order to receive some sort of closure and answers to the questions you otherwise would be left asking yourself at the end of book 2.

MandyThe Cuckoo’s Calling was suggested to me by a coworker. I had never read a mystery novel before, so I had my reservations, however, now having read this story, I cannot wait to read more! This novel follows a private detective by the name of Cormoran Strike who is investigating the murder of Lula Landry, a young multimillionaire actress. Lula suffered from poor mental health and an unstable relationship with her adoptive family and her famous boyfriend. Lula’s death was quickly dismissed as a suicide; however, her brother refuses to accept that Lula jumped from the top of her flat, but that she was pushed. Strike was injured when he did his tour in Afghanistan, but went into detective work after having his leg blown off in a landmine. Recently thrown out by his fiancé, Strike is living in his office at his firm, barely able to make ends meet. Lula’s brother comes to Strike after recognizing his name as his late brothers’ childhood best friend. Strike takes on the case, even though he too suspects Lula to have jumped, since he is being compensated enough to help him get back onto his feet. While the writing style can be very slow and detailed, lacking much action until later in the story, the character development and interactions do prove to be very important once you hit the turning point in the story. While the majority of the story is dialogue rather than big discoveries, it leaves you trying to fill in between the lines in order to solve the mystery yourself. Once you get to the final chapters of the novel, you will be unable to put the book down. Discovery after discovery begins to unravel and a huge bombshell is discovered, one I never saw coming. Once you figure out Strike’s number one suspect, you will question all the facts you have been reading, trying to figure where you had gone wrong. I highly suggest this book to anyone wanting to give the genre a try. You too might come out of reading this book with a new-found love.

MandyIf I could give this book at 4.5 star rating, I would. The only thing holding me back from giving it a 5, is that I had to make it through half of the book before I was actually interested in much of the storyline. Throughout the whole series, I feel as if we were conditioned to hate Nesta. She always knew how to push everyone’s buttons, she never said the right thing, and she did a great job letting the people around her fall between the cracks. Although she did have a few moments where she let her heart peek through, she came off as a very cold hearted and selfish person. This alone was enough for me to be disinterested in an almost 800 page story about Nesta. However, somehow the impossible happened, and now I love Nesta. The careful character development and story arc really caught me off guard, but that’s what makes a good story- the unexpected. I never thought I would be rooting for Nesta to have these big moments to prove herself, because prior to this book, she was far from interfering. As you get deeper in the book, you realize the mental and emotional traumas that greatly contributed to her behaviors. You go from loathing the girl to feeling sorry for her and only wanting the other characters to get a glimpse of the insight that you as a reader uncover. Which let me tell you, the other characters do not miss a beat with the insults and constabtly making her apologize for basically existing. The overarching woman empowerment aspect is definitely present in this book. You go from Feyre needing a mans attention to help her navigate most of life once she enters the magical world, to Nesta where she is extremely independent. When she does seek advice, she has a close knit group of girl friends that she carefully works with. These other females too are emotionally, physically, and mentally wounded; so it’s only fitting that they work together to overcome their hardships. When there is a sliver of romance every now and then, you almost get a sense that it weakens her in a way at the beginning. The romance hinders her from working on herself and it’s not until she faces her issues head on, that she can embrace love at the same time. I will be the first to say that I didn’t root for Cassian and Nesta. Their dynamic made no sense to me….until this book. A character I loved so much, with my least favorite character didn’t sit well with me. In my experience, the whole opposites attract dynamic only lasts so long. That being said, these two fight off their natural attraction for so long, that when they finally let their guards down, it’s everything you could ever want for these two. I could do without the countless, and very vivid, spicy scenes. I’m not sure what the author was trying to prove here, but it was way too much for my liking…and I’m not sure it added much to the storyline that your imagination wouldn’t already fill in for you. Overall, I think this is my second favorite installment in the series. Although it took me a lot longer than I would have liked to make it through, once I hit that 50% mark, I sped through because I HAD to know what would happen next. So advice for future readers is to keep with it. It does it get better, and once you get past the parts that have you rolling your eyes (you’ll know what I mean when you get there), it’s really a beautiful story that has a powerful message intertwined within itself.

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MandyI decided to reread this series to give the books a proper review. I first read the series a few years ago, before I started upon my reading journey. I decided to listen to the audio book to give me a new prospective the second time around. If I Stay is the type of story that you read and the message stays with you for quite some time after reading. It poses questions that such as what you’d do differently and you’ll wonder the authors motives for the choices some of the characters make. This isn’t the type of story you read and get over, you’ll have many emotions while reading, and I promise it’s worth the read! Mia is a talented musician in her senior year of high school. She has the picture perfect home life; two very loving parents who know how to have a good time and a sweet younger brother that looks up to her. The Halls share a deep appreciation for music, Mia’s parents were in a rock band, Teddy, her younger brother, even at a young age shows an interest in rock, while Mia has taken the classical route. Her boyfriend Adam is also in an up and coming rock band called “Shooting Star.” Very early in the story, Mia and her family are involved in a very serious car accident. Immediately after the accident, she has an out of body experience where she sees her whole family laying on the side of the road, and she feels as if she’s stuck in a bad dream. Mia begins to narrate her recollection of the events from the time of the accident to present time. As she’s continuing to fight her life and when she realizes the outcome of the accident and the effect it has on each of her family members, including herself, she’s posed with the question, does she stay, or does she let go? Through a series of flashbacks, we learn more about what Mia’s life was before the accident. Each chapter is named either after a specific memory Mia is recalling or a time. This gives readers more insight on her relationship with her family and her boyfriend, her friendships, and her ambitions. The chapters named after a time, for example “9:23 am”, are giving real time updates as to what Mia is going through, such as the time of the accident or when she’s admitted into the ICU. This also helps the reader better understand why she is struggling with the decision between life and death. While at first you may find the story to be depressing, I promise that you’ll realize this is a story about hope. Mia’s story is definitely tragic, but you’ll also get lost in the stories she shares of her first love, her special family traditions, and even auditioning for Juilliard. Regardless of her past and the series of ups and downs, it all comes down to her choice. Does Mia push past all the struggles that lie ahead meaning she’d be waking up an orphan and have to make the decision to 1. stay close to home and be with the love of her life or 2. pursue her musical dreams at Juilliard? Or does she find all of these decisions to much to bear and decide to stay with her family in the afterlife?

MandyI stumbled on this gem scrolling through Netflix. I recognized some of the cast, so I gave it a try…ended up loving it! I haven’t seen a movie with a similar plot, so it was really easy to fall in love with! Kept me on the edge of my couch!

MandyI was looking for a romantic movie while scrolling Netflix and the preview looked interesting. This film was really good! You follow a potentially toxic relationship…but with some interesting twists!

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MandyI was so excited to see the next installment of the After series! I was even more excited when I found out that Dylan Sprouse was a main character in this film! A must see for sure.

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MandyOh gosh was this movie sad! I knew going in I would need my tissues, but that didn’t stop the waterworks. This was still a cute love story, but it makes you appreciate what you have.

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