Fast & Furious Friday: The Summer Edition
Over here on the E.C., the weather this week has been, well...
In light of said schizo weather, I wrote a love note to winter...
Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
All my flowers are dead,
And I blame you.
So, Winter...
Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
All my flowers are dead,
And I blame you.
So, Winter...
To help get us all in a summery mood, one that does not involve a dressing room, lycra or horrible lighting, I thought it would be fun to share a few of my favorite summery reads. Take a peak and then let me know if you've read these OR what your favorite summer read is. :D
The Summer I Turned Pretty, It's Not Summer Without You and We'll Always Have Summer
Author: Jenny Han
Belly has always lived
for the summertime because it means all her favorite things: swimming,
the beach and the Fisher boys, Conrad and Jeremiah. She has spent every
summer with them at Cousins Beach for as long as she can remember. She
has always been in love with Conrad and finally, one summer, it seems
like he might have feelings for her too. But it turns out, so does
Jeremiah.
As the summers go on, Belly has to choose between two brothers who love her as she comes to the realization that she will have to break one of their hearts.
As the summers go on, Belly has to choose between two brothers who love her as she comes to the realization that she will have to break one of their hearts.
The beach, Grape Fanta, and the only other Fisher boys to steal heart besides my own. ;)
Things I Can't Forget (Hundred Oaks #3)
Author: Miranda Kenneally
Kate has always been the
good girl. Too good, according to some people at school—although they
have no idea the guilty secret she carries. But this summer, everything
is different…
This summer she’s a counselor at Cumberland Creek summer camp, and she wants to put the past behind her. This summer Matt is back as a counselor too. He’s the first guy she ever kissed, and he’s gone from a geeky songwriter who loved The Hardy Boys to a buff lifeguard who loves to flirt--with her.
Kate used to think the world was black and white, right and wrong. Turns out, life isn’t that easy…
This summer she’s a counselor at Cumberland Creek summer camp, and she wants to put the past behind her. This summer Matt is back as a counselor too. He’s the first guy she ever kissed, and he’s gone from a geeky songwriter who loved The Hardy Boys to a buff lifeguard who loves to flirt--with her.
Kate used to think the world was black and white, right and wrong. Turns out, life isn’t that easy…
Miranda Kenneally has the ability to make the reader see both sides of a situation and creates characters and stories that are realistic and completely relateable. Regardless of whether or not you agree with the choices being made, you're still able to empathize with what these characters are going through.
I would be remiss if I didn't mention Matt Brown. He's smart, funny, artistic, and definitely not riding the ugly train especially with those biceps. *fans face* Matt is also grounded in his beliefs and he helps Kate see that nobody is perfect, he teaches her how to forgive and how to see good in others.
Such A Rush
Author: Jennifer Echols
When I was fourteen, I made a decision. If I was
doomed to live in a trailer park next to an airport, I could complain
about the smell of the jet fuel like my mom, I could drink myself to
death over the noise like everybody else, or I could learn to fly.
Heaven Beach, South Carolina, is anything but, if you live at the low-rent end of town. All her life, Leah Jones has been the grown-up in her family, while her mother moves from boyfriend to boyfriend, letting any available money slip out of her hands. At school, they may diss Leah as trash, but she’s the one who negotiates with the landlord when the rent’s not paid. At fourteen, she’s the one who gets a job at the nearby airstrip.
But there’s one way Leah can escape reality. Saving every penny she can, she begs quiet Mr. Hall, who runs an aerial banner-advertising business at the airstrip and also offers flight lessons, to take her up just once. Leaving the trailer park far beneath her and swooping out over the sea is a rush greater than anything she’s ever experienced, and when Mr. Hall offers to give her cut-rate flight lessons, she feels ready to touch the sky.
By the time she’s a high school senior, Leah has become a good enough pilot that Mr. Hall offers her a job flying a banner plane. It seems like a dream come true . . . but turns out to be just as fleeting as any dream. Mr. Hall dies suddenly, leaving everything he owned in the hands of his teenage sons: golden boy Alec and adrenaline junkie Grayson. And they’re determined to keep the banner planes flying.
Though Leah has crushed on Grayson for years, she’s leery of getting involved in what now seems like a doomed business—until Grayson betrays her by digging up her most damning secret. Holding it over her head, he forces her to fly for secret reasons of his own, reasons involving Alec. Now Leah finds herself drawn into a battle between brothers—and the consequences could be deadly.
Heaven Beach, South Carolina, is anything but, if you live at the low-rent end of town. All her life, Leah Jones has been the grown-up in her family, while her mother moves from boyfriend to boyfriend, letting any available money slip out of her hands. At school, they may diss Leah as trash, but she’s the one who negotiates with the landlord when the rent’s not paid. At fourteen, she’s the one who gets a job at the nearby airstrip.
But there’s one way Leah can escape reality. Saving every penny she can, she begs quiet Mr. Hall, who runs an aerial banner-advertising business at the airstrip and also offers flight lessons, to take her up just once. Leaving the trailer park far beneath her and swooping out over the sea is a rush greater than anything she’s ever experienced, and when Mr. Hall offers to give her cut-rate flight lessons, she feels ready to touch the sky.
By the time she’s a high school senior, Leah has become a good enough pilot that Mr. Hall offers her a job flying a banner plane. It seems like a dream come true . . . but turns out to be just as fleeting as any dream. Mr. Hall dies suddenly, leaving everything he owned in the hands of his teenage sons: golden boy Alec and adrenaline junkie Grayson. And they’re determined to keep the banner planes flying.
Though Leah has crushed on Grayson for years, she’s leery of getting involved in what now seems like a doomed business—until Grayson betrays her by digging up her most damning secret. Holding it over her head, he forces her to fly for secret reasons of his own, reasons involving Alec. Now Leah finds herself drawn into a battle between brothers—and the consequences could be deadly.
I thoroughly enjoyed Leah! (To put it more bluntly, I LOVED HER SO HARD!) She's strong, fiercely independent and charming in her own unique way. Among her many talents is her ability to defend herself when necessary...
"If I ever see you again," I told her, "I will beat you like a dog." I was no more violent or tough than the next person, but talking big scared most people away as effectively as smacking them. (Leah p. 71)
All of these characters are flawed or broken in some way which is what makes them so relateable and lovable. What they're reminded of (as are we) is that we're all deserving of love - it shouldn't be something we have to earn nor should it depend on our social class.
Camp Boyfriend (Campboyfriend #1)
The summer of her dreams is about to get a reality check.
They said it couldn't be done, but geeky sophomore Lauren Carlson transformed herself into a popular girl after moving to a new school halfway across the country. Amazing what losing her braces and going out for cheerleading will do. Only trouble is, the popular crowd is wearing on Lauren's nerves and she can't wait to return to summer camp where she's valued for her brain instead of her handsprings. She misses her old friends and most of all, her long time camp-only boyfriend, Seth. This year she intends to upgrade their relationship to year-round status once she's broken up with her new, jock boyfriend, Matt. He doesn't even begin to know the real her, a girl fascinated by the night sky who dreams of discovering new planets and galaxies.
But Matt isn't giving her up without a fight. As he makes his case to stay together, Lauren begins to realize his feelings run deeper than she ever would have guessed. What if the guy she thought she was meant to be with forever isn't really The One? Returning to Camp Juniper Point was supposed to ground her uprooted life, but she's more adrift than ever. Everything feels different and soon Lauren's friends are turning on her and both guys question what she really wants. As summer tensions escalate, Lauren wonders if she's changed more than she thought. Will her first big discovery be herself?
They said it couldn't be done, but geeky sophomore Lauren Carlson transformed herself into a popular girl after moving to a new school halfway across the country. Amazing what losing her braces and going out for cheerleading will do. Only trouble is, the popular crowd is wearing on Lauren's nerves and she can't wait to return to summer camp where she's valued for her brain instead of her handsprings. She misses her old friends and most of all, her long time camp-only boyfriend, Seth. This year she intends to upgrade their relationship to year-round status once she's broken up with her new, jock boyfriend, Matt. He doesn't even begin to know the real her, a girl fascinated by the night sky who dreams of discovering new planets and galaxies.
But Matt isn't giving her up without a fight. As he makes his case to stay together, Lauren begins to realize his feelings run deeper than she ever would have guessed. What if the guy she thought she was meant to be with forever isn't really The One? Returning to Camp Juniper Point was supposed to ground her uprooted life, but she's more adrift than ever. Everything feels different and soon Lauren's friends are turning on her and both guys question what she really wants. As summer tensions escalate, Lauren wonders if she's changed more than she thought. Will her first big discovery be herself?
This was such a fun book to read! It made me laugh, it made me cry and it made wish I wasn't too old (and married) to go to summer camp! I loved the characters, the witty writing and how J.K. Rock made Lauren the true hero of this story. I came into CAMP BOYFRIEND rooting for one boy, fell in love with the other one and ended up waving my giant foam finger for Lauren!
Soon...
I enjoyed the Summer trilogy and Such A Rush!! I'm adding the others to my extended version of my TBR list. Summer please come quickly and pass very slowly! *wishful thinking*
ReplyDeleteI haven't read any of those, but Such a Rush and Things I Can't Forget are on my TBR list. :) The weather was beautiful here in KY today - I hope it stays that way!
ReplyDelete