An Opening Debut: Side Effects May Vary - Julie Murphy

Side Effects May Vary by Julie Murphy
Date Released: March 18, 2014
Publisher: HarperCollins
Pages: 336 pages
Format: Hardcover
Source: Library
Rating: LOVED
Series: Standalone

Goodreads Synopsis: What if you'd been living your life as if you were dying—only to find out that you had your whole future ahead of you?

When sixteen-year-old Alice is diagnosed with leukemia, her prognosis is grim. To maximize the time she does have, she vows to spend her final months righting wrongs—however she sees fit. She convinces her friend Harvey, who she knows has always had feelings for her, to help her with a crazy bucket list that's as much about revenge (humiliating her ex-boyfriend and getting back at her archnemesis) as it is about hope (doing something unexpectedly kind for a stranger). But just when Alice's scores are settled, she goes into remission.

Now Alice is forced to face the consequences of all that she's said and done, as well as her true feelings for Harvey. But has she caused irreparable damage to the people around her—and to the one person who matters most?

Julie Murphy's Side Effects May Vary is a fearless and moving tour de force about love, life, and facing your own mortality.

From Goodreads

Side Effects May Vary by Julie Murphy was a great, eye-opening book about treasuring every moment and living life to the fullest. I liked the take Murphy took on the topic of "cancer" and the dual POVs actually turned out great. Side Effects May Vary was an amazing debut and I fully recommend it to anyone in need of a good YA contemporary..and this one is definitely memorable!

In the book, we meet 16 year old Alice who has leukemia. In her last months, she tries to fix all the wrongs she did and make her last few month memorable. As Alice pieces back her life together from her besfriend, Harvey to family dynamics, she learns how important life is. I admired Alice a lot in the book. We see her in different lights since Murphy decided to do "Then" and "Now" chapters in the book. I liked the mission Alice set out to do and seeing how everything pieced together. Great characters and each one was memorable!

I'm glad that Side Effects May Vary didn't have that romance overdose. While we see Harvey deal with his feelings for Alice and Alice seeing her family fall apart, romance wasn't the main point, and I LIKED that a lot! It seems like a trend with YA authors, romance has to be the big aspect of the novel, but Murphy reinvented that and I really enjoyed it. Everything about Side Effects May Vary was stunning from it's cover to the little quotes even to it's bittersweet ending. 

Everyone needs to pick this one up! Trust me, you'll definitely enjoy Alice's story of recovery!

Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Goodreads

A Great Ending: Deadly Little Sins - Kara Taylor

Deadly Little Sins by Kara Taylor
Date Released: August 5, 2014
Publisher:St. Martin's Griffin
Pages: 288 pages
Format: Paperback
Source: For Review (Thanks)
Rating: LOVED
Series: (Prep School Confidental #3)

Goodreads Synopsis: In Kara Taylor's Deadly Little Sins, Anne Dowling investigates a mysterious disappearance in this fast-paced, twisty conclusion to the Prep School Confidential series.

It’s August and Anne is back in New York City for the summer, but she can’t escape the memories of the terrible things that happened at the Wheatley School last spring— and the possibility of being expelled looming over her. When an unexpected— and suspicious— turn of events gets Anne sent back to Wheatley, she’s determined to figure out what happened to her favorite teacher and only adult ally at the school: Ms. Cross.

After a shocking, gruesome murder with connections to the Wheatley School occurs, Anne is convinced there’s more to Ms. Cross’s sudden disappearance, and that her favorite teacher is in danger. But after an ugly breakup with Brent and a new, inexplicable distance between her and Anthony, Anne isn’t sure who she can trust. And even worse, someone at Wheatley knows the truth about what happened to Ms. Cross— someone who will stop at nothing to keep Anne from learning the truth in this engrossing, unputdownable read. 

From Goodreads

There's no doubt that The Prep School Confidential series has been a favorite of mine ever since reading the first book. It's full of suspense and ease yet it has it's own take on mysteries, I loved every book in the series and I'm hoping for another! The covers may be off putting for guy readers, but I didn't mind and the story will blow you away. Deadly Little Sins was a great end to an amazing series. Anne was amazing as ever, the writing suspenseful and so easy to read, and I loved every single thing about the book!

 

  Happy Dance

Suspense on top of suspense

One thing that I liked that Kara did with the plot was layering it over. Every single thing that happened from the first book (Isabella, Anthony) lead to the next book and so on. It was so smart how it all played out in Deadly Little Sins. Anne is on the verge of being expelled from Wheatly, but she does get back in. But now, she has all eyes on her and she can't stop from finding out what happened to her favorite teacher, Ms. C. Suspense on top of suspense I loved it!

Anne is kick ass

I love Anne, she has to be one of my favorite characters I read this year. She knows how to find the mystery and piece together all the clues, every reader will love her. Another thing I liked about Deadly Little Sins was how every character helped move everything. You have Anthony wanting Anne's forgiveness, Dennis the police officer helping Anne, Ms. C, and all the people she has to meet and help her uncover the mystery of Ms. C. LOVED IT!

 

 I loved it, tears of joy

Deadly Little Sins was such an amazing end to one of the most amazing series I ever read. It's fresh and unique and I love Kara Taylor's take on YA mysteries. The whole series was full of fun and action. Everything Anne uncovers, turns up the suspense and thrill, I recommend this series to anyone!!

Thanks for the review copy!

Find Deadly Little Sins On:

Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Goodreads

The Silver Shadows Trivia Answers!

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Welcome to The Silver Shadows Trivia! 

Hosted by Jen @ YA Romantics & me Patrick @ The Bookshelves!

From July 23 - July 27 (5 Days) you will have a questions based off The Fiery Heart by Richelle Mead, the book before The Silver Shadows. Both Jen and I will have a question and each time you answer it, you will get an entry to win a copy of The Silver Shadows below! Giveaway is International!

Be sure to check out both of ours blogs this week, everyday for a new trivia question! 
 

Use hashtag: #SilverShadowsTrivia on twitter to chat with us  about the book and trivia! Also pick up the button above!

 Here are the answers! (They are in bold)

July 23, 2014

Question: What would Adrian sleep in before he got his life together?

A. A House

B. A cardboard box 

C.With Sydney in Amberwood

D. A old subway station

 

July 24, 2014

Question:  Who is the name of the person Sydney, Ms. Terwilliger, and Adrian go to see regarding the Strigoi and how to kill them?

A. Rowena

B. Sydney's mom

C. Veronica

D. Inez

July 25, 2014

Question: What book does Adrian read on the plane, when he and Neil go to visit Nina Sinclair and his sister Olive?

A. The Great Gatsby (Of course, since Adrian loves to party!)

B. Jane Eyre

C. Romeo and Juliet

D. The Catcher in the Rye

July 26, 2014

Question:  What two elements does Sydney know how to fully control and wield?

A. Fire and Water (Who remembers when Sydney conjured up the fireball? That was one hint to get the answer and water was another one mentioned in the beginning of The Fiery Heart)

B. Spirit and Indigo Magic

C. Water and Earth

D. Earth and Fire

 

July 27, 2014 (Last Day!)

Question:  Why does Sydney and Zoe's dad come to visit them in Palm Springs?

A. To help Sydney with the ink

B. To discuss the divorce (Initially, it was just to discuss the divorce in the beginning, but developed into something more later on. I just wanted what was the one main reason their dad came to Palm Springs)

C. Both B and D

D. To train Zoe to be a better alchemist

 BIG THANKS to Jen @ YA Romantics for always being up to doing these trivia and all the reader and followers who participated! Thanks so much!

Fresh Off The Press (#29) - July 28 - August 3

 Welcome to Fresh Off The Press! It’s where I'll showcase all the great books hitting shelves in a week. These are all YA titles and hope you get to pick them up soon! These books are releasing from (July 28 - August 3)

Hardcover:

 

Paperback:

Happy Reading! Hope you have a great week and be sure to pick up some of these amazing books hitting shelves this week!