Review: Dismissed by Kirsty McManus

DIMISSED

by Kirsty McManus

YA Romance

166 pages

The second Lizzie White lays eyes on her new English teacher Brandon Thomas, she is hooked. Brandon is young, cool and sexy – and nothing like the other teachers at her school. But of course he is forbidden from fraternising with the students or forming any sort out of outside hours relationship. And combined with the fact that Lizzie’s best friend Taylor declared her feelings for Brandon first (and has therefore claimed theoretical ownership), Lizzie decides it’s all too hard and focuses on a budding relationship with fellow student and class clown Gabe instead. But then Jason shows up. Jason is Brandon’s trouble-making twin brother who seems to have no qualms about flirting with students or leaving a trail of broken hearts wherever he goes. Before she knows it, Lizzie is dragged into a confusing world of blurred lines and lustful thoughts, where loyalties are tested and true feelings are explored.

MY TIDBITS

Firstly, I found the cover priceless--a picture perfect fan girl look. And it sums up the story pretty well. 

Lizzie is a seventeen (almost eighteen) year old, who finds the new English teacher cute. But so does every other girl in the school. But what makes Lizzie sympathetic is that she doesn't freak out like everyone else. She thinks the guy's cute. Sure. She fantasizes about him a bit too, but unlike her best friend, she doesn't really go all out. She has a level head and tries to stop her best friend's sillinesses. . .well, in so far that it's possible. 

I enjoyed the peer-pressure in this, subtle yet the message is there. Lizzie is a great friend, but like many kids that age, sometimes blind and gets in over her head. Still, she's got a strong character, who tries to do what's right.

The story moves along nicely, not many slow moments. It's easy to drop into Lizzie's world and get to know the people around her. Sometimes the motion details could have been cut back, and I was a little disturbed at how ready and willing people seemed to be to pop into bed with someone else. I would definitely recommend this for a higher YA, since comments and suggestions can get pretty heavy. 

As to the plot itself, it's pretty clear cut and keeps up a nice pace. We get to know the characters pretty well, there's a little bit of mystery going on, and there are some unexpected twists and turns. But this is a clear teen romance. 

Summed up, I'd recommend this for the higher YA end and teens who love comedy romance with a bit of a fan girl twist.

And here she is. . . 

KIRSTY MCMANUS!!!

Kirsty McManus was born in Sydney, Australia and moved to Queensland when she was fourteen. When she was twenty-five, she lived in Japan for a year with her partner Kesh and worked as an English teacher. She also spent a year in Canada and then settled back down on the Sunshine Coast in 2008. She now writes part time while designing websites and looking after her two little boys.

The Secret of Strange Waters Cover Reveal by Kelly Hall

The Secret of Strange Waters

The Light Keeper Series # 2

By- Kelly Hall

Genre- YA Paranormal

Unfortunately for Lily Jordan, being a Light Keeper doesn't come with an instruction manual, but neither does being sixteen. While learning to use her powers, she’s confronted with unforeseen obstacles and forced to break her own rules in order to save her circle of friends.

With her mom’s wedding on the horizon, will misinterpreted visions create new enemies who could threaten Lily’s exposure? Will death and heartache ruin the big day? For Lily, the answers only lead to impossible decisions. Does she embrace her powers or abandon them for false normalcy?

Kelly Hall’s second book, The Secret of Strange Waters, proves paranormal powers aren’t always a blessing.

Gifted by J.A. George

GIFTED

The Hayven Series Book 1

by J.A. George

YA Dystopian/ Romance

302 pages

“Why do birds fly? Why do lions hunt deer? Why does the sun shine and the moon glow? Because it must. I wish I could tell you why, I truly do. It mustn’t be easy, such pressure weighted on such young shoulders, but we do not always choose the lives we must lead.” 

Avery Gray had no choice but to be different. She was not born that way; she was chosen. 

After having met a special, silver-haired woman, and the handsome and enigmatic Theodore-James Connors, Ava finds herself in Hayven, a city separated from the rest of the world, where only gifters – ordinary people with extra-ordinary gifts – can go. With Theo, his friends, Hayven, her gift, and the ability to ‘travel’ in different colours, Ava must now accept that she can no longer classify herself as normal. As friendships develop, and Theo and Ava become closer than she anticipated, it turns out her new gifted life comes with a catch. With no choice or say on the matter, Ava must save a city she is starting to fall in love with; a city that has almost begun to feel like home. 

EXCERPT

Toni laughed. “How would you know!? You’ve never dated anyone!”

She had me there. Toni wasn’t deliberately being nasty, she was simply stating facts. I was now nineteen years old and I had never had a proper boyfriend. A few quick, shy kisses from a couple of valentines’ years ago didn’t count in Toni’s eyes. It never mattered to me, having a boyfriend and all of that couple business. I just figured I’d get one when the time was right. Boyfriends just weren’t something I was interested in at the moment. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a cynic or anything, but I’m also not a believer in fickle love. You know, like those girls who claim they’re in love with the guy they met at the bookshop five minutes ago and are convinced they’ll have his babies. You know exactly what I’m talking about; we’ve all met one. I’m not into that kind of ‘love’, I’m more into long-lasting things. Call me old-fashioned, but I wouldn’t mind if my first official boyfriend was my last.

Toni however, was a different matter. She’s had six proper boyfriends to date and has slept with five of them, and Toni’s got it into her head that what Toni does, everybody should do. Toni isn’t exactly Huxton’s next top model as she’s got rather thin brown hair - which she’s always complaining about - and a fairly large nose; but she does have lovely long eyelashes and full lips. However, it was her confidence that landed her boyfriends.

I, if you hadn’t already guessed, was boyfriend-less and a virgin, both of which according to Toni, with me being almost twenty years old, just wouldn’t do. She’s been trying to match me up with boys ever since we started university.

“So what is your type then?” Toni asked.

“I –”

“- don’t know?” she finished. “Yes, you say that every time I ask you.”

“Maybe you should stop asking then?”

“Rest assured, I will when I get an answer I’m satisfied with, but until then… Oh, come on, everyone has a type. I don’t know why you won’t just tell me –”

I was hoping the pause Toni had taken was either from a distraction in the distance or her finally letting the topic go, but that of course was too good to be true. Toni had come to an abrupt halt only to swivel round and look me in the eyes.

“Wait,” she ordered. “Is your type…girls?”

“What?!”

“Oh my gosh, it is, isn’t it?”

“No! No, it’s not!”

I couldn’t find the words to defend myself because I was too busy struggling not to laugh, but I knew that if I did laugh Toni would think she was right. Which she wasn’t.

“Come on, you can tell me. It’s not like I’ll mind or anything!” She suddenly fixed me with a serious look. “This is a new era Ava, one that is very accepting of –”

“Okay Toni, let me stop you right there. I promise you that my type, if I even have one, is male."

All about J. A. George. . .

J.A. George is the author of the four-part series, GIFTED: THE HAYVEN SERIES. Jessica spent years of her life reading book after book before sitting on her bed one morning, opening her laptop and typing Chapter One into her word document. Now, not only does she read book after book, she now writes book after book too. When she's not writing, she's trying to break her record of finishing a tub of Oreo ice cream in less than forty-five minutes.
You can contact her at Jess.george@hotmail.co.uk

Review: Half-Life by Tina Ferraro

HALF-LIFE

by Tina Ferraro

Leap Books

YA Paranormal

108 pages

Half a life is not worth living.

Probably not a good idea to take advice from your dead twin sister. High school sophomore Trisha Traynor and friends have played the Halloween mirror game for years, the one that’s supposed to show a glimpse of the guy they’ll marry. But no one’s ever seen anything.

Until tonight—when Trisha is gob smacked by the candlelit arrival of her long-deceased twin sister, instead of her crush, Kirk Maxwell.

In a voice and vision that only Trisha can hear and see, Chessie claims to be back on a compassionate journey. Trisha fears she’s gone nuthouse crazy. But she nonetheless follows the instructions Chessie outlines in their nightly conversations, until she finds herself stepping across some ethical lines, and probably ending all chances with Kirk.

When a sisterly showdown ensues, resulting in the shattering of the mirror, Chessie’s gone again, and a heartsick Trisha sets about righting her recent wrongs. That is, until she stumbles upon the real reason Chessie had come back and the most important glimpse yet that the mirror could never predict.

MY TIDBITS

Trisha is a teenage girl packed with spunk, lots of corners and still, a big heart. She wants what all girls her age want, to be accepted, but already with the opening scene, it becomes clear that her long-time best friend has her head somewhere else. 

This is a cute, short, coming of age story. Trisha is trying to please her parents, who are still upset after her twin sister's death years before, while fighting to get her social life worked around. Of course, boys are a big part of this. There's a great relationship between her and her parents, not so far in that it's always rosy, but rather realistic. The mother has troubles dealing with the sister's death and does let it affect how she raises Trisha, and somehow, Trisha has to come to terms with this.

Peer-pressure is also a big issue in this story, a problem Trisha has troubles dealing with, especially when pleasing certain people helps her reach goals she and her mother both have set for her. There's a lot of strands to this weave, and that's exactly what makes it so easy to sympathize with. Life isn't clear cut either.

The paranormal aspect is cute and pulls at the heart strings. Still, I had felt this could have been built out more. We get to know Chessie a little, but it wasn't enough for me to connect with her. But in a story this short, that's also a tall task to expect. Plus, the ending felt rushed in so far that it wrapped up a little too nicely. 

But, in general, this is a smooth read which hits on many topics teens will connect with, and I believe they'll enjoy reading this and have no trouble feeling for Trisha. They'll see a lot of themselves in many parts of this story.

****

New Release - Dreams - The Arie Chronicles # 2 by Dani Hart @authordanihart @sparklebooktour

Presented by: Sparkle Book Tours

Dreams - The Arie Chronicles # 2

by Dani Hart

 

Audience: Young Adult  - Genre: Fantasy - Format: E-Book & Paperback - Publisher: Anchor Group - ASIN: B00ZM52PQU - Date Published: July 13, 2015

 

Being forced into a fantastical world was never in Arie’s life plan, yet she quickly fell in love with the world of enchantment. Her determination was to create a life for her newfound little sister, Amary, that was full of hope, tranquility, and love. While losing her best friends during the transition into her new life wasn’t easy, Arie now understood it to be a necessary sacrifice to ensure the safety of Amary and the natural balance of light and dark.

In this journey riddled with power, discovery, and mystery, there was also the threat of destruction. Was Arie’s love enough to protect those she cared for? Or would the price to save the balance of the two worlds she loved come at too high a price?
 

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I love my life and am so grateful for all of the support. I have the courage to live a dream. Xo
 

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