**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: https://bookbriefs.net**
YA ReviewMy Thoughts

Resisting the Rebel is a young adult contemporary romance by author Lisa Brown Roberts. It is a fake relationship trope story. I have seen so many of these this year, that even though I love them so much, I can't help but compare them to one another. Resisting the Rebel is a book that I almost gave up on. I would say, for about the first 20% of the story or so, I really wasn't liking this story. I just kept thinking to myself that the characters were a little too over the top. They were all cliches, which doesn't normally bother me, but they were each just too much. And because I have read so many fake boyfriend/girlfriend stories, I couldn't help but feel like this one didn't measure up to the others. But then...Resisting the Rebel really started to pick up. I ended up enjoying this one, much to my surprise. I still didn't love it as much as some other fake relationships books I have read this year, but it turned out to be much better than I was initially expecting.

I liked Caleb pretty much from the jump. I don't know why he was classified as a bad guy, because right from page one he was helping Mandy out. I think he is really just a big old teddy bear. Mandy on the other hand is like a tiny tornado. She made me dizzy just listening to her. Eventually she grew on me but it took some time. She was over the top hippie dippy, and over the top with everything, really. But I will say one thing about her...she acts her age. I had to keep reminding myself that she was only 16. And one of the things that I ended up enjoying the most about Resisting the Rebel is the amount of character growth that occurs from start to finish in this book. By the end of the book, not only did I understand Mandy better, but Mandy understood herself better, and that was kind of cool to see.

The romance between Caleb and Mandy was really cute. it started out as a means to an end for both of them. For Mandy it was to catch the eye of her longtime crush, who was being courted by the resident mean girl, and for Caleb it was to get his crazy ex off his back. Once their fake relationship started, the book became exponentially cuter. I had a lot of fun with the story from this point on. And the summary is right...there are a lot of swoon kiss moments.

Bottom line: Resisting the Rebel is a book that got off to a very rocky start for me, but ultimately ended up being a good read. It wasn't my favorite fake relationship book that I have read in 2016, and it does feature a lot of cliches, but as long as you are ok with that, Resisting the Rebel is a cute romance.

This review was originally posted on Book Briefs

**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: https://bookbriefs.net**
Announcing Trouble is a young adult sports romance by author Amy Dominy. Announcing Trouble is such a cute read, and it is perfect for these hot summer months. It will put a smile on your face and it will make you laugh and even swoon. I thoroughly enjoyed this story, and it made me excited to read more from Amy Dominy. 

In Announcing Trouble we meet Garrett and Josie, our two main characters. Josie is a used to be fan of baseball, but she blames baseball for many bad things in her past, so now she is bitter towards the game. Garrett is bitter as well, because he was on his way to becoming the next big player, or at least a high school star, when an injury took him off the field. They enter each other's lives in the sports broadcasting booth. Garrett because he wants to stay as close as possible to the sport that he loves, and Josie because she just can't help herself. Josie cracked me up. Right from the moment when she runs into the broadcasting booth to lay into the announcer, she had my heart. 

Announcing Trouble is a feel good contemporary romance full of heart, plenty of banter, and lots of baseball fun. I think fans of the sport will really enjoying watching these two bond, even if it is somewhat reluctantly over baseball, and watching their story come together. I really enjoyed Announcing Trouble. I think it is a must read for fans of young adult sports romances. 


This review was originally posted on Book Briefs

**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: https://bookbriefs.net**

The Replacement crush is a young adult contemporary romance by Lisa Brown Roberts. I heart this book. It has been so long since I have read a standalone young adult romance that was so cute and adorkable that it put a huge smile on my face, like this book did. I had a blast with the replacement crush. It reminded me everything that I love about young adult contemporary romances. I love the brisk pace of the story. I love the solid friendships, and the cute flush of high school crushes.

Vivian is burned by a secret summer fling that wants nothing to do with her when school starts. (jerk alert!!) so she decides that what she needs to get over said jerk is to come up with a replacement crush, which I have to say, is a solid plan. But, and here is the real kicker...she doesn't want anyone on the list that she could actually see herself liking. She wants to play it safe and just pick guys that she can feel comfortable with but not fall for. Insert the new guy, Dallas here. Dallas is what Vivian and her bff like to call nerd-hot. And let me tell you nerd-hot is my kryptonite. I love Dallas so much, I can't even adequately express my love for him in words. Let's just say he is easily a contender for top book boyfriend of 2016.

It was so much fun to watch Vivian and Dallas embark on what I am going to call the crush dance. You know what I am talking about. When you like someone, or you are starting to like someone and you do that awkward, but totally adorable dance around one another, not wanting to admit what you might be feeling, but also wanting to spend time with the other person, and looking for clues and hints for how the other person feels about you. My heart just can't handle the total cuteness of the crush dance and of this book. I love Viv and Dallas.

Lisa Brown Roberts is a god to of mine for young adult contemporary romances. I know I can always expect great characters, cute dialogue and plot situations and an all around fun read. And The Replacement Crush might just be my favorite of hers yet! Trust me, you will fall in love with Dallas. (but pick another book boyfriend because this nerd-hot guy is MINE.)

This review was originally posted on Book Briefs

**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: http://bookbriefs.net**Playing the Player is a young adult contemporary romance that totally made me smile. I think it is safe to say that I am a huge fan of new adult contemporary romances, but young adult contemporaries are tougher for me to fall in love with. I feel like they have realistic and age appropriate for them to be well done, and for some reason I think that is harder in the young adult arena. I think Lisa Brown Roberts did a fantastic job keeping these high schoolers true to themselves and true to actual high school students in Playing the Player. That does not mean that they were perfect. Not by a long shot, but they were just like so many high schoolers that I knew growing up.

Playing the Player takes an age old concept- the good girl reforming the player, and breathes new life into it. It is not that Lisa Brown Roberts did something totally different with the cliche, but she executed the story so so well. And I have said time and time again, cliches are not a bad thing. They are proven concepts for a reason. They work- if they are well done. And this one was so well done. I absolutely loved the slow burn romance between Trina and Slade. No insta love here.

Trina is type A and organized to a fault. It actually hinders her in her every day life. (some of her little quirks did irk me momentarily. Like her hang up on people "ditching" her. I'm sorry, she was not ditched at any point in the story.) Slade mellows her out. And Trina helps Slade in all the best ways too. Slade gets to be vulnerable and himself around Trina. Not all at first, but it creeps up on him. Day after day working together and they each get a little bit closer, a little more crush worthy to the other. It was just so darn cute. I can't even take it. (I am smiling just thinking about this book, as I write my review.)

If you like young adult contemporary romances, Playing the Player is one you will not want to miss. I can't wait to read more books by Lisa Brown Roberts because she tells a story so well. This book brought me back to my summers as a camp counselor. It is totally easy to see Trina and Slade fall for each other because I watched it happen every summer. It is inevitable. But are they just for right now, or something more. Who is truely playing the player? Read the book to find out.

This review was originally posted on Book Briefs

Malice is a young adult time traveling science fiction story by Pintip Dunn. Malice was a fast paced story to try and save the world from a virus that if left unchecked would wipe out two/thirds of the world’s population. Pretty dire stakes, right? I think one of the best parts about Malice was the writing. This book immediately drew me in and captured my attention. I also loved the romance element, and even though I don’t read a ton of novels that feature time travel, I always do seem to be pretty interested in the how of it all. I love seeing how the author is going to work out the mechanics of time travel, and I think that Pintip Dunn did a great job, making the whole thing seem plausible.

I love that Malice is unlike most of the books I typically read about. It made the plot feel extra fresh, unique and exciting to me. A race to save the world from an unknown threat, voices in your head from the future. All of it felt very mysterious. In Malice we meet our main characters, Alice and Bandit. I loved Alice. I loved how close and protective she was of her brother, and I loved watching the bantering interactions between her and Bandit. Alice first hears a voice in her head at school, and the voice tells her to go over to popular boy, Bandit and profess her love for him. She reluctantly does it and it sets off a chain of events that lead her to her main quest. Bandit made me smile right from their first texting interaction. I was very interested in the romance element of the book. (I know, shocker!) Sometimes even more interested in the romance, than in the race to save the world.

I will say that I figured out who the person was almost immediately, but the plot had plenty of twists, turns and surprises to keep me really interested and invested in finding out how everything comes together. I really enjoyed the journey and ride that this book took me on. I could easily see this turning into a movie or TV series. The book wrapped up nicely, but I could totally see another book set in this world, with either these characters or new ones. If you are a fan of mysterious, fast paced novels with a high stakes adventure and great writing, then Malice is a book that you should definitely check out. I really enjoyed it!

She’s With Me is a young adult contemporary romance by Jessica Cunsolo. She’s With Me has a lot of themes rolled into one book, and I am excited this is going to be a series. This is the first book in the series. There is obviously the romance element, which presents itself in the form of a bully romance, which is something I used to absolutely hate, but have grown to enjoy if it is well done. Character growth is absolutely vital for me. I don’t just want the bully to fall in love with the girl and stop bullying her, I want to dig a little deeper than that. I want to learn what makes the character tick, so I can believe the character growth when we see it. She’s With Me is much more than a Bully romance though, there is also a secret woven in throughout the plot that gave the book another layer that made it very interesting.

In She’s With Me, we meet our main character Amelia. Amelia is new to town. We find out she is a part of the witness protection, though as part of the mystery of the story, the reason why is not revealed until almost the end of the book. I really liked the mysterious air that this brought to the story, and it also made the plot really interesting. It overlaid a sense of doom and gloom and something very heavy over parts of the story. But then, there were moments of total levity and fun that interspersed to make sure the book didn’t feel too down and heavy.

Amelia almost immediately draws the attention of the town bad boy, Aiden, and his friend Mason. I liked all of the antics in She’s With Me. Amelia does not back down in the face of bullies and the character development was great. Amelia has a strong group of friends that she formed almost an immediate connection with. I always appreciate strong friendships in novels, but it was kind of hard to believe that Amelia could show up new in town and become instant best friends, but I really did appreciate her friendships. As is the case with good bully romances, there is more than meets the eye with Aiden. I really enjoyed peeling back his many layers, and Jessica Cunsolo does a fantastic job with her character development.

She’s With Me is a great novel. It is sweet, funny, serious at the right times and I am interested in continuing on with the series. I won’t spoil much in terms of the actual plot, but it going to be perfect for fans of contemporary romances.

Wicked As You Wish is the first book in the young adult fantasy series, A Hundred Names for Magic by Rin Chupeco. Wicked As You Wish was a fun adventure, and is a good start to what promises to be an interesting fantasy series. I had a few minor isues with the world structure, but other than that I really enjoyed the story. I liked the characters and the magic system, and once the book hit the 20% mark, I fell easily into the plot and was swept up in the magic of Wicked As You Wish.

In Wicked As You Wish, we meet our main character Prince Alexei of Avalon, and his best friend Tala. Prince Alexei, or Alex for short, was forced out of his family’s kingdom of Avalon when the savage Snow Queen overtook the land. Alex is forced to go into hiding in The Royal States of America. It was an interesting premise, but I found myself wishing that a little more time was spent explaining some of the finer details of the world. It is a big world! I was a bit confused at times, but if you can let go of some of the little details, and allow yourself to just go with the flow of the story, I think you will end up enjoying it like I did. I really liked it when Alex and Tala started out on their adventure.

They set out to take back Avalon from the clutches of the Snow Queen. I found Tala’s magic to be just as fascinating as the rumored Snow Queen’s dark and dangerous magic. The Snow Queen is pretty fierce, but Tala is just as fierce. She has a magically ability to repel and negate magic, which is pretty cool! The characters in Wicked As You Wish were my favorite aspect of the story. I loved getting to know them and watching them grow and ponder on themes of morality throughout their adventure. The character aspect of the story, and the diversity of the cast, was really, really well done in my opinion.

Fans of Fairy Tale magic and Fantasy books, wiht a dash of magical realism, will enjoy the adventure set out in Wicked As You Wish. I have high expectations for the next book. I want to do a deeper dive into the world structure, and I am hoping to get a better understanding of all the world’s moving parts and pieces in the next installment of the Hundred Names for Magic series. I think if Rin Chupeco can do that, then this series will be so awesome! I can’t wait for the next book.