Revolution presented the obsession with music and 18th-century France in the face of post-traumatic stress disorder and mental illness. The combination of these added so many layers, I was immersed in Revolution for the entire duration of the audiobook. Living in contemporary times, Andi’s grief over the loss of her brother was palpable as she and her mother had completely fallen apart.
THIS SONG WILL SAVE YOUR LIFE by Leila Sales
There’s so much that spoke to me when I read This Song Will Save Your Life. For this I loved it very, very dearly. It reminded me why I crave stories and why I can care so much about fictional people. Elise was my girl. She reminded me that I’m not alone and never have been. All that bullying I went through in high school, searching for acceptance, wanting to be someone — these aren’t alien experience to many of us. Despite that, resultant feelings of loneliness can be very overwhelming. This Song Will Save Your Life tapped into that psyche and spun a raw and engaging tale.
GET HAPPY by Mary Amato
Get Happy is such a sweet book with the right amount of conflict and tension. I liked Minerva right from the start. She was kinda bratty at first but a very self-aware brat fluent in sarcasm, so reading this book amused me tremendously.
OPEN ROAD SUMMER by Emery Lord
Ever got your emotions tangled up so much in a book, you didn’t know where to draw the line between your mind and the book? That’s how I felt about Open Road Summer.
Open Road Summer was actually not a book that I meant to read. I saw many praises for it online, particularly on Twitter, which is why I decided I would pass. I didn’t even read the synopsis. I saw the cover with the awfully overexposed sky washing out the couple with that weird tone of a green for the title, and thought, Nah, not gonna read that. I pretty much ignored all the raving henceforth. But then, a brand new copy stared right at me at the library. It basically called out to me, telling me to give it a chance. I couldn’t resist. I had to know what the hype was about.
SCREAMING DIVAS by Suzanne Kamata
Screaming Divas had a couple of elements that I particularly liked: music, friendship and diversity.
Music effectively tied all four main characters together despite all their differences. Trudy, Harumi, Cassie and Esther had very different musical backgrounds, yet they came together to form a punk band. Each one of the girls had something to bring to the table, which also led to a lot of conflict. I think that is one thing I particularly appreciated. They didn’t always get along, which added a facet of realness that I often find lacking in books.
