Road Trip Wednesday is a ‘Blog Carnival,’
where YA Highway's contributors post a weekly writing- or
reading-related question that begs to be answered. In the comments, you
can hop from destination to destination and get everybody's unique take
on the topic.
This Week's Topic is: What was the best book you read in August?
I can't front, I'm super happy the summer is over! I am not a teacher nor am I a traditional student, so the summer means nothing to me but going to work dressed for the 100 degree weather outside and then sitting inside my 50 degree office freezing all day. That's it! I'm old!
But, I have done a buttload of reading this summer, definitely!
I think what I'm about to reveal about myself here is very telling about my character. What a person chooses to read says so much about them and, in many ways, is as personal as it gets. I tell myself when I read young adult literature (and I am strongly on the side of "adult" in age than the than "young") that I am reading for "craft" or to get a feel for the genre, but EF IT, I just like young adult books. They are fun, less depressing than adult literature or complicated for the sake of being complicated, and they make me darn happy. So, sue me! I like what I like.
Recently, however, I've been reading more books that could be categorized as New Adult or Young Adult Mature because there is many a hooking up going on and lets face it, I read for entertainment purposes and I immensely enjoy reading love scenes. August, however, has been dedicated more to a certain author instead of a particular book, since I have read all of her books over the last few weeks and that is Tammara Webber.
From Goodreads: A girl who believes
trust can be misplaced, promises are made to be broken, and loyalty is
an illusion. A boy who believes truth is relative, lies can mask
unbearable pain, and guilt is eternal. Will what they find in each other
validate their conclusions, or disprove them all?
What I liked about this book: I think the way she writes is effortless, realistic, and the dialogue (especially between the main character and her friends) is funny and natural. Recently, especially with a few books I have read that have been promoted by several websites as New Adult or Young Adult Mature, I find myself liking the story, but hating the writing so much that I feel like I get dumber with every word on the page. I haven't figured out why this keeps happening, but that's the subject of another post and not the case here.
I also appreciated the protagonist's journey and how she changed from someone willing to accept what happened to her with silence to someone who literally fought back for herself. The story drew me in immediately and I was sad when I was done, the hallmark of a good book for me.
I enjoyed this book so much that I promptly downloaded the rest of her books, the Between the Lines Series, because I am a stalker like that. I liked those as well and recommend them all.
What about you? What's your favorite August (or summer) read?
I read the first two of the Between the Lines series and really enjoyed them. I have EASY on my Kindle right now and keep meaning to get to it. I always forget about the stuff on my Kindle because I much prefer paper books. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on these books, and welcome to RTW! :)
ReplyDeleteI do too! There are at least ten books on my kindle that I haven't read yet. But, I am making myself read those first before I move onto purchasing anything else, paper or e-book.
DeleteThanks for commenting!
Hello fellow newbie! Thanks for popping over to my blog :)
ReplyDeleteI like your catagorization of "New Adult" novels! I feel like that almost describes the kind of novel I'm trying to write. While I love YA and read quite a lot of it (again, totally agree that it can be far more entertaining than "grown up" books) I sometimes find the label a bit problematic... I mean, my characters are 19 and 21. One of them is graduating college. He's clearly been around the block a bit at this stage and to be honest I'm stuggling with how "adult" some of the scenes should be. Still on draft one though so maybe that's something to think about later on :)
Of course and thank you right back!
DeleteI am no expert, but in my opinion...assuming that we can look at this based on how much "romance" there is...if the characters get to third base, its YA-M. I don't really consider a book NA unless the characters are older than 18. I understand the conundrum because my story is about two 17 year olds, but I see it as a series that follows them through their 20s with much more than a kiss as the climax of the story. So who knows what genre that is, lol.
OH I just bought this the other day. I also read the first two of Between The Lines and thought this sounded interesting!I found Between The Lines to be much more basic than many of the complex YA books I've read recently, so debated whether to buy it but after seeing it's your book of the month i'm glad I did :)
ReplyDeleteThanks! I recommend for an easy (pun intended) read...nothing that will get your brain muscles to sweat. Hope you enjoy it.
DeleteThat book is on my nook right now! Waiting in line behind other books. I'll get to it soon, I hope.
ReplyDeleteAnd I agree about love scenes... Love scenes are my main reason for reading. Or watching movies. Or getting into TV shows. I love love :)
I'm so glad I stopped by here because I've never heard of this one, and I think this is a must read! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteI love your description of what summer means to you: 100 degree weather, 50 degree office. I have the same problem. I wear long sleeves all summer long because it's so damn cold in my office!
ReplyDeleteI'll have to check this book out!