From Goodreads: When Native American
Fredricka ‘Fred’ Oday is invited to become the only girl on the school’s
golf team, she can’t say no. This is an opportunity to shine, win a
scholarship and go to university, something no one in her family has
done. But Fred’s presence on the team isn’t exactly welcome -
especially not to rich golden boy Ryan Berenger, whose best friend was
kicked off the team to make a spot for Fred. But there’s no denying that things are happening between the girl with the killer swing and the boy with the killer smile ...
My Rating: 2.5 hearts
Thoughts
on the Novel: I think I was expecting Liz Fichera’s Hooked to have a lot
more romance than it did because of the cover. Instead, the plot kind of revolves more
around self-discovery than romance. Besides the lacklustre romance, I also found the
characters to be very passive and forgettable. Another reason that I was
disappointed by Hooked was because the racism encountered by Fred was never dealt with
directly. What I did like about Hooked, however, was that it
explored Native American culture and featured golf (which I find incredibly
boring) – two themes that haven’t gotten much attention in YA.
Hooked was released in January 2013 by
Harlequin Teen.
In exchange for an honest review, this book was received from the publisher (Harlequin Teen) for free via NetGalley.
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From Goodreads: Cami Broussard has her
future all figured out. She'll finish her senior year of high school,
then go to work full-time as an apprentice chef in her father's French
restaurant, alongside her boyfriend, Luke. But then twenty-year-old
ex-Marine Julian Wyatt comes to live with Cami's family while recovering
from serious injuries. And suddenly Cami finds herself questioning
everything she thought she wanted. Julian's all attitude,
challenges and intense green-brown eyes. But beneath that abrasive
exterior is a man who just might be as lost as Cami's starting to feel.
And Cami can't stop thinking about him. Talking to him. Wanting to kiss
him. He's got her seriously stirred up. Her senior year has just gotten a
lot more complicated ...
My Rating: 3 hearts
Thoughts
on the Novel: Stir Me Up by Sabrina Elkins was a quick read that I’m still
feeling ambivalent about (though it did leave me quite hungry). On the one
hand, the characters had chemistry; and I really liked that they chose to
pursue their own dreams rather than trying to adjust them for each other or
anybody else. On the other hand, I found it hard to relate to the characters. I
just never connected with Cami and didn’t like how she treated Luke. I also think
I would have liked Julian more if Stir Me Up had included his POV as well. Overall,
the best part about Stir Me Up for me was the characters considering options
other than college after high school since this isn’t something that’s really emphasized
in contemporary YA.
Stir Me Up was released by Harlequin
Teen in October 2013.
In exchange for an honest review, this book was received from the publisher (Harlequin Teen) for free via NetGalley.
I tried about 20 pages of Hooked before I realized that the story didn't go anywhere for me so I DNFed it. I'm glad I made the right decision. Your review of Stir Me Up reminded me of my reaction to Wild Cards which I liked until I started thinking about it.
ReplyDeleteI thought these were both NA's based on the covers! Anyhow, I actually like Hooked's description more than Stir Me Up. I think golf is boring too but I love sports in YA and I haven't read any about golf yet, so I'll keep my eye on it and I hope I'll like it more than you did,
ReplyDeleteEhhh yeah... it doesn't surprise me that neither of these didn't really work for you (Stir Me Up sounds okay though). They wouldn't work for me either. Also, I'm tired of seeing those same two models from Stir Me Up on the cover of a bazillion books.
ReplyDeleteStir Me Up has gotten so much praise, but I've been wary about it since most NA doesn't work for me. I'm on something of an NA kick recently though, so I still may give it a try sometime.
ReplyDeleteWendy @ The Midnight Garden
I read both of these, and can't say that I remember much about them now. Apart from the fact that they were quick and easy reads. Sometimes that's enough for me when I pick them up, but it would be great to be able to say that the characters or stories are memorable. Still, I'm glad you liked Stir Me Up more than Hooked, even if neither of these blew you away. Great reviews, Z. :)
ReplyDeleteSad to hear that you didn't like Hooked that much. It's on my wishlist, but I think I won't be getting to it too soon now. Really like that you are keeping your Mini Reviews short...unlike me LOL.
ReplyDelete