Cynthia Hand is becoming a favorite author. I love her writing style and how her characters tend to be a bit sarcastic and flippant. The atmosphere stays nice and light despite the fact that there are some fairly serious topics tackled in the movement of the plot. The paralleling to A Christmas Carol as well as the references to the classic are really well done and had me smiling from start to finish. It's a great update of a great classic and was a very quick read that I didn't want to put down.

This was a beautiful and emotional read that explores grief in such a unique, but hard-hitting way. In fact, there is a LOT of hard-hitting content in this book. There is examination of mental health and discovering one's identity. Despite this amount of deep content, it is delivered in such a graceful and soft way. I loved the writing and the fact that the book just seemed to flow in a calm, natural way. The pacing was perfect for me. It wasn't too slow or too fast, but had just enough intrigue to keep things slightly tense and enough detail and examination of atmosphere and character to keep it from feeling overwhelming.

Leigh is a great character. She has a LOT to deal with for a teen and I think she handles it incredibly well. There is a good balance between her abilities to compartmentalize and function and her feelings of confusion, anger, sadness, and fear. She is complex and blatantly amazing. This girl has a LOT thrown at her in a short period of time and she does not just shutdown. She works through it at her own pace and in her own way. I think this serves as a good example and narrative for teens to consider. While some readers have apparently been annoyed by it, I LOVED her relationship with her best friend and how they used colors to describe their emotions. Because sometimes THERE JUST AREN'T WORDS...and that's okay.

I just loved this book. The magical realism was well-written and propelled the plot in interesting ways. There will definitely be a reread in the future. Beautiful. Magical. Wonderful.

This read was so much fun! There is a need to suspend belief a bit, but really it's just all good fun. It's an excellent, distracting read. The plot is fast and super atmospheric with great quirky characters. Stevie is a great protagonist with a realistic personality, and I loved her.

Dark academia is totally my thing and this book definitely delivered on that front. The atmosphere of the school is cool and creepy and the backstory is mysterious and fun. The founder is a bit of an eccentric, as are the admissions process and the coursework.

The mystery is enjoyable and just twisty enough with an ending that was both surprising and entertaining. It's one heck of a cliffhanger though, so I'm glad that the sequel is available to grab soon.

This book was so cute. The perfect balance of obstacles and overcoming. The writing captures the voice of teenage Janna so well, including her imperfections and misunderstandings. The narrative starts off with a fairly jarring picture of description of Janna's interaction with "the monster" and sets things moving with a good amount of tension right off the bat. The story then moves at a comfortable pace, but Janna's struggles and interactions with others continue to build the pressure she faces and the many instances of prejudice and mistreatment she faces.

Janna is a strong character with great integrity and I very much appreciated that in her. For her to be able to hold up her own beliefs and stick with them even in the face of a father who doesn't agree with them was incredibly inspiring. I'm glad that she had support from the rest of her family, but it still spoke so strongly to me that she was able to be that comfortable in her convictions.

This is a great presentation of the many ways that prejudice slips in to teenage life. Teenagers can obviously be cruel...I think most of us who have survived adolescence would agree with that statement...but the things Janna faces are things that I personally would have never considered. To have her be so blatantly disrespected just hurt my soul. The ADULT teacher refusing to learn the correct term and insisting that she needed to use the word "hajib" instead of the correct "hijab" because she can't pronounce it seriously irritated me, yet I know that there are people out there who do this.

I loved the characters in this book all around. I definitely want more from some of the supporting characters, so I am glad that there is a sequel being released. Janna's friends and family have great personalities that come through incredibly clear and I love the way they interact.

There were some pieces of the plot that I felt were a little loosely addressed and I wish more attention had been given to them. I can't really explain those issues without spoilers. However, I think the crux of the plot was delivered in a bit more of a telling than showing way in the climax and this was a bit of a disappointment. It did nearly cause me to lower my rating by a star because things were going so well for the remainder of the book that I just felt let down. The rest of the plot, including the ending wrap-up, was really well handled.

There was a LOT of Muslim culture presented in the narrative and I loved how that was delivered. It wasn't forced, but instead flowed naturally into Janna's activities and thoughts. This was very well done and I enjoyed learning more about the culture in a way that didn't seem judgmental or in-your-face. It was educational without being intimidating. There were some issues with consistency on Janna's part in a specific scene in the book that I wish was handled better. It sounds as if I am in the majority with this as Islamic readers have also voiced concern with the blase attitude Janna takes during a scene in gym class. Beyond that instance, I think there was a lot of positive that was presented and I think it is a good read for those unfamiliar with Islam to grow in their knowledge and understanding of the culture and religious beliefs.

This is a fantastic YA read and I highly recommend it. I love S.K. Ali's writing and I will ABSOLUTELY be reading more of her work in the future.

* Disclaimer: I received a copy of this novel from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. *

This one is a keeper! I love magical realism and this book manages to weave a fantastical piece of whimsy around a beautiful and multi-faceted story. It's magnificent. I fell in love with the characters and couldn't get enough. The narrative extracted feelings that ran the gambit and it was fantastic. The Keeper of Lost Things is a wonderful example of a huggable book. I'll be adding this one to my collection.

It's official. I am having a love affair with everything Becky Chambers. This was so freaking good. WHY DID I WAIT SO LONG TO READ IT?!?!

Excellent character composition. So much wonderful inclusion that just feels seamless and is handled so masterfully. Seriously like a handbook for appropriate social interactions. I loved how well she handled it all and dealt with some of the precarious situations faced when interacting with those who are different from ourselves. The interactions between the characters were so loving and wonderful and there were so many just warm & fuzzy moments. It wasn't sappy, but dang it hit the feels.

The plot was also magnificent and just flowed. It wasn't a short book, but it definitely felt like it breezed by. It tackled so many BIG social topics in a way that felt natural and noninflammatory. It was just amazing. Who has this kind of talent?? Apparently Becky Chambers, because she nails it every time.

Thank goodness this is part of a series because I just need more of this. This is one of those books that feels like it just opened a whole new realm of reading possibilities. Do yourself a favor. Read it.

I loved this book. I was skeptical going in, having heard mixed reviews and not really having a big love for sci-fi, but it surprised me. I've enjoyed Hank Green for many years, having come across him like many have, via his author brother John Green and their shared YouTube channel(s). This is a new platform from which to enjoy his often worldly ideas. The story is interesting and poignant, a comment on human nature without being overly preachy. It is entertaining and thoughtful while staying immensely creative and smart. There is a lot to unpack in the pages and I liked the fact that not only could I enjoy the content, but there were bits and pieces that left me thinking and considering things even when I stopped. I loved how tangible and accessible he made April. She felt like a real person, as if this story was one that was true. That feeling was a lot like the one I experienced with listening to Daisy Jones and the Six, where the characters really took on a life of their own. I like that kind of writing. It's immersive and just feels great to read. I enjoyed the ending and I am very glad to hear that Green is working on a follow-up novel. There is so much more I want to know. This was a great book and I will likely be reading it again in the future.