Emmy & Oliver by Robin Benway

Book Summery (Via Goodreads):Emmy’s best friend, Oliver, reappears after being kidnapped by his father ten years ago. Emmy hopes to pick up their relationship right where it left off. Are they destined to be together? Or has fate irreparably driven them apart?
Emmy just wants to be in charge of her own life.
She wants to stay out late, surf her favorite beach—go anywhere without her parents’ relentless worrying. But Emmy’s parents can’t seem to let her grow up—not since the day Oliver disappeared.
Oliver needs a moment to figure out his heart.
He’d thought, all these years, that his dad was the good guy. He never knew that it was his father who kidnapped him and kept him on the run. Discovering it, and finding himself returned to his old hometown, all at once, has his heart racing and his thoughts swirling.
Emmy and Oliver were going to be best friends forever, or maybe even more, before their futures were ripped apart. In Emmy’s soul, despite the space and time between them, their connection has never been severed. But is their story still written in the stars? Or are their hearts like the pieces of two different puzzles—impossible to fit together?

Book Review:
I've been looking forward to reading Benway's newest novel since I saw it was going to be released! I was super excited that my library had a copy available, so I put this baby on hold and greedily read it as soon as I got my hands on it. I wasn't quite sure how I would like the whole kidnapping issue. However, Benway deals with it in a delicate manner that adds to the overall story-line. Of course, Emmy and Oliver's relationship takes center stage, and rightfully so. However I really enjoyed the incorporation of Drew and Caroline. Both supporting characters add color and depth to the story arc. Overall, this is an impressive story to add to Benway's collection as well as the many reasons that I love her writing!

Cover Art Commentary:
Love the simplicity of this cover. First of all, the colors are striking and contrast nicely. Secondly, I love the nod to surfing. Third, the fingerprint heart is just adorable!

Rating:

Weekly Round-Up 8/23 - 8/29

Life This Week:
What a crazy week! We had 2 wedding showers. Everyone was so nice and generous and kind. I had a couple of doctor appointments. John is getting back into the swing of things at work...the semester has begun and it can be a little intense at first. Unfortunately, that has left very little time for reading. Hopefully I'll have more time this week!

Books Read and Reviewed:

A Court of Thorns and Roses (A Court of Thorns and Roses #1) by Sarah J. Maas

Top Ten Tuesday:
Top Ten Books That Would Be On My Syllabus If I Taught YA fantasy 101

Beyond the Books:
If I had $1000, I would buy….

What I am Currently Reading:

What I Will Be Reading Next:

Randomness:

Life of A Blogger: If I had $1000, I would buy….

This Weeks Topic: If I had $1000, I would buy….

Hosted by Kissin' Blue Karen

*Image found here

It's not real exciting, but I would put $1,000 towards central air. I don't know about you folks, but it has been a hot couple of weeks. We looked into it after we bought the house, and it's a bit too expensive  for our budget right now. Maybe next year...

What would you do with $1,000

A Court of Thorns and Roses (A Court of Thorns and Roses #1) by Sarah J. Maas

Book Summery (Via Goodreads):When nineteen-year-old huntress Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a beast-like creature arrives to demand retribution for it. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she only knows about from legends, Feyre discovers that her captor is not an animal, but Tamlin—one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled their world.
As she dwells on his estate, her feelings for Tamlin transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion that burns through every lie and warning she's been told about the beautiful, dangerous world of the Fae. But an ancient, wicked shadow grows over the faerie lands, and Feyre must find a way to stop it... or doom Tamlin—and his world—forever.

Book Review:
After being slightly disappointed with Heir of Fire, I took my time picking up A Court of Thorns and Roses. Upon finishing ACOTAR, I'm happy to announce that this is Maas' writing that I fell in love with to begin with. Although the first 100 pages are a bit slower paced, the rest of the book makes up for it. The imagery is powerful and vivid. I can easily picture the lush ancient forests and the humble cottage Feyre lived in. Feyre is a powerful main character, full of strength, anger, and beauty. I'm not as much of a fan of Tamlin...I found him to be a bit boring. I did really like Lucien. I would love to learn more about his story. Overall, the story was really engaging, fast paced, and difficult to set down. I highly anticipate the next installment of the series.

Cover Art Commentary:
The cover is a gorgeous cover. I love the subtle references to the story. Overall, well done!

Rating:

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books That Would Be On My Syllabus If I Taught YA fantasy 101

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books That Would Be On My Syllabus If I Taught YA fantasy 101

Hosted by The Broke and The Bookish

Weekly Round-Up 8/16 - 8/22

Life This Week:

Only 4 more weeks until the wedding! I can't believe it! John's sister finally closed on her new house, so we've been helping her move and settle in. 

Books Read and Reviewed:

Ink and Bone (The Great Library #1) by Rachel Caine

Going Rogue (Also Known As #2) by Robin Benway

Top Ten Tuesday:

Top Ten Most Intimidating Books

Beyond the Books:

Favorite Game

What I am Currently Reading:

What I Will Be Reading Next:

-or-

Which do you think I should read???

Randomness:

Pumpkin watching TV. She does this often.

John and Sharkey snuggling. :)

Life of A Blogger: Favorite Game

This Weeks Topic: Favorite Game

Hosted by Kissin' Blue Karen

Oh man! This is such a hard topic because we LOVE playing games. It was tricky to pick our top faves, so here are some tried and true games we always stick to!

Apples to Apples

*Image found here

Boggle

*Image found here

Farkle

*Image found here

Uno

*Image found here

Join the fun here!

Going Rogue (Also Known As #2) by Robin Benway

Book Summery (Via Goodreads): Being permanently based in a local New York City high school as an undercover operative has its moments, good and bad, for 16-year-old safecracker Maggie Silver. 
Pros: More quality time with her former mark-turned-boyfriend Jesse Oliver and insanely cool best friend, Roux. Getting to spend quality time with her semi-retired and international spy honorary uncle, Angelo. 
Cons: High school and the accompanying cliques, bad lunches, and frustratingly simple locker combinations. 
But when Maggie's parents are falsely accused of stealing priceless gold coins, Maggie uses her safecracking skills to try and clear their names. 
Too bad it only serves to put her and everyone she loves in danger. Maggie and her "new team" flee to Paris where they must come up with a plan to defeat their former allies. 

Book Review:
Robin Benway has long been one of my go-to authors. When I saw there was a sequel to Benway's Also Known As, I was excited to continue Maggie's journey. Once again, Benway does not disappoint! The cast of characters are a mixture of delight and humor. They add a wonderful splash of color to this espionage-centered novel. It's nice going past the initial meeting of each character. This time around you really get to know their quirks and personalities. One of Benway's strongest attributes is the ability to write believable YA charters. That being said, I know there is a slim chance of a real teenage spy that works for a collective of agents. But that's not what I'm talking about. I'm referring to Maggie's teenage behavior, the presence of parents, friends, accountability...So many times these things get overlooked in the YA genre. Ahem. Moving on. I also, of course, love the espionage setting. It's just not a common theme...it's so playful and refreshing! If you haven't picked up any of Benway's books, I highly recommend you do so. This series is a fun place to start!

Cover Art Commentary:
I just love the covers of this series! They are so so fun, colorful, and playful!

Rating:

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Most Intimidating Books

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Most Intimidating Books

Hosted by The Broke and The Bookish

*I felt like this weeks and last weeks topic's were too similar, so I chose a previous TTT topic! :)