Review: The Secret Year by Jennifer R. Hubbard

Title: The Secret Year

Author: Jennifer R. Hubbard

Publisher: Viking Juvenile

Publication date: January 7th 2010

Buy the book: Amazon / Barnes and Noble

Take Romeo and Juliet. Add The Outsiders. Mix thoroughly. Colt and Julia were secretly together for an entire year, and no one?not even Julia?s boyfriend? knew. They had nothing in common, with Julia in her country club world on Black Mountain and Colt from down on the flats, but it never mattered. Until Julia dies in a car accident, and Colt learns the price of secrecy. He can?t mourn Julia openly, and he?s tormented that he might have played a part in her death. When Julia?s journal ends up in his hands, Colt relives their year together at the same time that he?s desperately trying to forget her. But how do you get over someone who was never yours in the first place?

(Image and summary taken from Goodreads.)

Review:

This book gave me really mixed feelings. The ending left me confused and depressed. Half the time I was reading it I wanted to chuck something at Colt and scream at him saying, "Dude! Julia's dead, let her go! She probably never loved you anyway!" What I didn't like about the book is that in the end he wasn't able to get over her properly and ended up losing great people. I disliked Julia. I thought that in a way she was only using Colt to have something interesting in her life. It's like she just wanted something in her life that was different. The story was very sad but I wouldn't call it tearjerking, just really sad. The ending was sad. The romance was sad. Though I'd have to say, kudos to Jennifer for her beautiful writing. Even though the story was (again) sad, her writing is great! You can really feel how Colt felt when he lost Julia. Especially since people didn't even know they were together, he wasn't able grieve for her properly and openly.

Though I prefer the cover of the paperback version more. (The hardback cover sort of got me in trouble in school. Haha.)

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Review: Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A. S. King

Title: Please Ignore Vera Dietz

Author: A. S. King

Pages: 326 pages

Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers

Published on: October 12th 2010

Source: Boought

Buy the book: Amazon / Barnes and Noble

Vera’s spent her whole life secretly in love with her best friend, Charlie Kahn. And over the years she’s kept a lot of his secrets. Even after he betrayed her. Even after he ruined everything.

So when Charlie dies in dark circumstances, Vera knows a lot more than anyone—the kids at school, his family, even the police. But will she emerge to clear his name? Does she even want to?

Edgy and gripping, Please Ignore Vera Dietz is an unforgettable novel: smart, funny, dramatic, and always surprising.

(Summary from Goodreads)

Review:

I loved, loved, loved this book. One of the bests in 2010. At first, I didn't even know such book existed but then Louisse got it and read it then started telling me how great the book was and suited my book preferences. HA! WAS SHE RIGHT?? HELL YEAH! The book was so good, I finished the whole thing in 4 hours. STRAIGHT. I couldn't stop! At one point, I was getting sleepy but loaded myself on an a growth-forbidding drink (caffeine) just so I could go on! I felt like if I stopped, (which I didn't) I wouldn't be able to get the real "essence" of the story so I just kept going on and on and ON! HAHAHAHAHA! Loved this book to bits. It even made me cry at the near end when Charlie (SPOILER ALERT!!!!! SPOILER ALERT!!!!! SPOILER ALERT!!!!) confessed his love for Vera but it was already too late because he already died and couldn't do anything anymore except, well, maybe haunt her. I feel sad for Vera because I feel like she feels she's unloved but really she is. Her dad is full of humor too. Everyone- or thing in this book if full of wit and brains. (and the lime-green background with the lighter subject doesn't hurt too!)

A.S King, you smart, funny, talented writer, you! =))

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