Tweet Cute / Emma Lord

4/5

I was in the mood for a cute chick lit and Tweet Cute exceeded my expectations. The writing is much more advanced than what you'd find in an average YA rom-com novel. Not only does Emma Lord create characters with depth, she also describes them in precise ways that are distinct from most chick lit novels. Because of this, the enemies-to-lovers story didn't feel trite. Instead, I was learning about new, well-developed people, and watching them slowly grow closer. 

I finished Tweet Cute in two days and it was a breath of fresh air compared to the dense and not-always-well-written YA fantasies I'd been reading. I would highly recommend this to readers who enjoyed Matson's Since You Been Gone or Elston's 10 Blind Dates.

Ninth House / Leigh Bardugo

3.5/5

I am a big fan of Leigh Bardugo's. I've been with her since Shadow and Bone first came out and have read all of the Grishaverse novels more than once. I was excited for her debut adult novel, especially since I enjoyed Sarah J Maas's debut adult. 

I burned through Ninth House. The plot and characters are engrossing. The novel follows the characters during ~3 different time periods, which may sound confusing but I never had a problem keeping up. I actually really enjoyed the nonchronological format because it lended to the mystery of the novel and slowly revealed how each character got to where they are today. I loved the way Bardugo wrote Alex's simultaneous vulnerability and strength.

Her depiction of Darlington deserves just as much if not more praise. I found myself falling in love with Darlington, even though we only meet him in flashbacks or through the perspectives of other people. That is one of my complaints with the novel-- I spent the novel eagerly anticipating meeting Darlington in present time, but we never do. 

My biggest problem with the novel is the way it wrapped up: in a hasty and absurd fashion. The explanation for the murders felt absurd, cheap, and out of line with the rest of the novel. On a slightly separate note, the reveal reminded me a bit of Meg Cabot's Mediator series. There is a bit of an info dump at the beginning, but, as I feel with most info dumps, it's a minor issue because all it requires is a bit of skimming and stamina. Overall, Ninth House is a strong read because of the characters, plot, and writing. 

All the Stars and Teeth / Adalyn Grace

1/5

All the Stars and Teeth started off strong with a determined lead, Amora, who has a magical power that is much darker than most YA powers. Unfortunately, that was the only original aspect of this novel. The rest of it includes cliches like Amora running off with a handsome "pirate" to "save her kingdom," finding out that the dad that she's looked up to is actually a liar, and that her arranged fiancé actually has feelings for her. 

In her journey, she experiences a jumble of miscellaneous encounters, none of which are particularly intriguing. All of it is very standard for a YA fantasy novel: feeling out of place as a princess in a tavern, easily slaying a mystical ocean beast, rescuing a mermaid from bad men, and finding out that the villain isn't as villainous as he seems. I could go on. It was all very predictable and boring; by the end of the novel I was skimming so fast I was reading one word a page, and I could still follow the storyline.

I will give points for how gory her power is, how they would cut off limbs from one of the characters who had the ability to regenerate limbs so that Amora could use his bones. That lack of squeamishness is relatively rare in YA novels. But overall, there are much better versions of this novel out there, such as Natalie Parker's Seafire. 

The Starless Sea / Erin Morgenstern

2/5

I am a big fan of The Night Circus, Erin Morgenstern's debut novel. She perfectly captured the magic of a moving circus and the desperate desire to be a part of one. I had high hopes for The Starless Sea and was looking forward to experiencing Morgenstern's magic on paper again. 

Unfortunately, Morgenstern gets so caught up in trying to create something grand and magical that she completely forgets that a cohesive plot is necessary. Starless Sea starts off strong with Elliot finding himself pulled into a mysterious world. But as the novel continues, Morgenstern forces in so many cliche elements that the world become cluttered and absurd. Starless Sea involved the personification of both fate and time, moon and sun (at least I think it did?), along with talking bees and time travel. And of course, don't forget all of the star-crossed lovers those conditions make!

Yes, the magic of her writing is still there. Her description of painted doors coming alive is beautiful. I loved the little stories within stories, such as the vignette about the moon and the sun. But Morgenstern tries to tie together way too many stories, making metaphors literal and then metaphorical again, that at the end of the novel, I had no idea what had happened or what she was trying to say. I gave it two stars rather than one because I managed to finish it, so I guess that's good.

If you haven't read The Night Circus, I would highly recommend that. Afterwards, if you miss Morgenstern's magic, give The Starless Sea a try. Enjoy the writing, but don't bother searching for a plot. 

The Shadows Between Us / Tricia Levenseller

4.5/5

If you're a fan of Holly Black's The Cruel Prince, I would highly recommend you give The Shadows Between Us a try. They are similar in that our female protagonist isn't afraid to be cruel to get what she wants, and that both the female and male leads have very gray morals. 

I liked that Alessandra was so different from most YA leads who are usually goody-two-shoes fighting for justice. I can't say that I liked her as a person though, because the things she does and the way she thinks were too cold-hearted for that. The same can be said for the Shadow King. I was shocked to find that he approved of her calculated methods, and I wish that he'd been given a more developed backstory.

While The Shadows Between Us is the closest novel to The Cruel Prince that I've read so far, and it is very impressive for that in itself, it doesn't quite match up to The Cruel Prince because its characters lack the charisma of Jude and Cardan. But characters like Jude and Cardan are rare, so to set every character to that standard would be unjust. Plus, Shadows had a host of side characters that I appreciated.

Though I complained earlier about do-good protagonists, I did feel like the novel lacked a bit of justice at the end. Other than that, The Shadows Between Us was extremely satisfying, with strong themes of independence and feminism, and I would recommend it to mature teens.