The Wedding Date Disaster by Avery Flynn: Cute Premise, Flat Characters

The Wedding Date Disaster by Avery Flynn

Published: August 25th, 2020

Publisher: Entangled: Amara

Tropes: Enemies to lovers, fake dating, forced proximity, only one bed

Heat level: 🔥🔥🔥

# of pages: 330

My rating: 3 stars

Acquired this book: From the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for honest consideration

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Hadley Donavan can’t believe she has to go home to Nebraska for her sister’s wedding. She’s gonna need a wingman and a whole lot of vodka for this level of family interaction. At least her bestie agreed he’d man up and help. But then instead of her best friend, his evil twin strolls out of the airport.

 

If you looked up doesn’t-deserve-to-be-that-confident, way-too-hot-for-his-own-good billionaire in the dictionary, you’d find a picture of Will Holt. He’s awful. Horrible. The worst―even if his butt looks phenomenal in those jeans.

 

Ten times worse? Hadley’s buffer was supposed to be there to keep her away from the million and one family events. But Satan’s spawn just grins and signs them up for every. Single. Thing.

 

Fine. “Cutthroat” Scrabble? She’s in. She can’t wait to take this guy down a notch. But somewhere between Pictionary and the teasing glint in his eyes, their bickering starts to feel like more than just a game…

 

 

 

This was my first Avery Flynn book. I was immediately drawn in by the beautiful cover, and the synopsis sounded really fun. This book was sexy with some fun moments and a great setting, but overall it fell a bit flat for me.

 

I liked the premise of the book: Hadley was making a rare trip home to the family ranch for her sister’s wedding and needed a buffer from all the family togetherness she knew she was in for. She asked her best friend Web to go with her, but instead she got his ‘evil twin’ - and her arch nemesis - Will. The pair disliked each other from their first meeting and that hatred only grew over the next year. Will made up his mind from the beginning that Hadley was a gold digger with her sights on his brother, and he was determined to put an end to her supposed scheming.

 

While the concept was fun and there were some great moments throughout, it was the characters that kept me from loving this book. They felt really flat to me with very little depth, personality, or growth. I liked Hadley well enough, but it was more than halfway through the book before we learned anything real about her. It did make me sympathize with her and connect to her a bit more, but by that point, it felt like too little too late. I didn’t like Will at all. He was a pompous, judgemental asshole, and he treated Hadley like crap for most of the book. His whole mission was basically to prove Hadley was a gold digger...while also sleeping with her every chance he got. The story was very repetitive at times because most of Will’s thoughts centred around how Hadley was a gold digger and he needed to keep her away from his brother.

 

I feel like if there had been a bit more build-up at the beginning, the pacing would have been stronger. The story launched right in, we were told all these things, including the fact that Hadley and Web were best friends, and yet we barely saw them together or learned how they became so close.

 

Overall, The Wedding Date Disaster was fun and playful, with some entertaining shenanigans. While it wasn’t a favourite for me, I’m sure it’ll be a winner for many other romcom lovers.

 

Have you read The Wedding Date Disaster? Have you read any of Avery Flynns other books?

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Poe Dameron: Free Fall by Alex Segura: My Introduction to Star Wars Novels

Star Wars - Poe Dameron: Free Fall by Alex Segura

A Star Wars Disney Canon Junior Novel

Published: August 4th, 2020

Publisher: Disney Lucasfilm Press

Genre: Young Adult Science Fiction

# of pages: 252

My rating: 3 stars

Acquired this book: From the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for honest consideration

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It's been a few years since Poe's mother passed away, and Poe and his father, who was a pilot for the Rebellion, have had more and more trouble connecting. Not sure what he wants to do with his life, teenage Poe runs away from home to find adventure, and to figure out what kind of man he is meant to be.

 

 

 

2020 is the year of Star Wars for me. I finally started watching the movies on New Year’s Day (thanks Disney+ for finally giving us a way to watch all of them in one place!). Poe Dameron quickly became one of my favourite characters of the franchise, so when I saw this book about a young Poe, I was intrigued. The Rise of Skywalker movie left me with so many questions - Poe was a spice runner? What was his history with Zorii? - and I was glad to have the opportunity to get some of those questions answered.

 

Since the death of Poe’s mother several years before, Poe’s dad has tried to quell Poe’s desire to be a pilot and seek more than a life as a farmer on Yavin 4. Poe longs for the type of adventure his parents experienced when they were fighting in the rebellion, but he knows he’ll never find it under the watchful, overprotective influence of his father. His life of adventure comes in the form of helping a stranded group of ‘smugglers’ off Yavin 4, but he gets more than he bargained for when he realizes he’s just offered to be a pilot for the infamous Spice Runners of Kijimi.

 

As a newbie to the expanded universe and origin stories, I wasn’t sure what to expect from Free Fall. It was interesting getting a look at Poe as a headstrong teenager and seeing his character fleshed out a bit more. Like many, I wasn’t thrilled about the whole ‘Poe was a spice runner’ reveal in The Rise of Skywalker, but knowing the details made me feel better about it. You could really feel the conflict within young Poe - his desire to return home warring with his desire to stay loyal to the spice runners, especially to Zorii, with whom he’d formed a connection. He ultimately realized that while he wanted a life of adventure, he wasn’t cut out for the violence, thievery, human trafficking, and other horrors that came with being a spice runner. His misadventures were necessary to show him what he did want and that there were safer and more noble ways to get the adventure he craved.

 

While I mostly enjoyed Free Fall, I had a few issues with it. The pacing was off, I was often confused about the passage of time, the relationships were very flat, and the ending was abrupt and not very satisfying. Overall I found myself wanting more. More of a connection to the characters, more depth, more emotion. While I did feel Poe’s conflict, I wanted to really connect to him and feel more emotion from him. This book felt like a tiny piece of a snapshot and I wanted the whole picture, or better yet, the whole album.

 

Poe had lived such a sheltered existence and here he was thrown into this life of crime and violence, but we got more action scenes than actually seeing how it all affected him. And while we did get the history between Poe and Zorii, I wanted to know more about Zorii herself other than the one-dimensional impression we got of her having no morals and being driven by anger and a misguided sense of loyalty to the spice runners. I was also hoping for more depth in Poe and Zorii’s relationship; we were told they’d formed a connection and had moments of intimacy but other than a few brief on-page scenes, we didn’t see much of it. We were told the important bits and then shown the action.

 

Mild potential spoiler: A friend of mine knows I ship Poe and Finn; she sent me an article a few months ago about how this book appeared to keep Poe’s sexuality open in subtle ways. In the book, the author used neutral phrasing that would definitely leave Poe’s sexuality open to interpretation. For example, “He’d cared for people before - felt the flutter of excitement at something new with someone, only to see it dashed” and “He’d messed up relationships with people before”. The use of ‘people’ rather than a specific gender is subtle and I’m sure it’s as much as Disney would allow, but it gives me some hope that maybe somehow, someway, someday, we’ll get more.

 

While I didn’t love Free Fall, I’m glad I read it. If you love Poe Dameron and want to know more of his back story and his history with Zorii, Free Fall makes for an interesting read that answers some of the questions raised by The Rise of Skywalker.

Have you read Poe Dameron: Free Fall? Have you read any of the Star Wars books? Have any favourites/ones you'd recommend to a newbie like me?

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Review: It’s Not Like it’s a Secret by Misa Sugiura

It’s Not Like it’s a Secret by Misa Sugiura
Series: Standalone
Published: May 9th, 2017
Publisher: HarperTeen
400 pages (eARC)
Genre: Contemporary Young Adult/LGBTQ
Acquired this book: Via Edelweiss in exchange for honest consideration
Warning: May contain spoilers
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Sixteen-year-old Sana Kiyohara has too many secrets. Some are small, like how it bothers her when her friends don’t invite her to parties. Some are big, like that fact that her father may be having an affair. And then there’s the one that she can barely even admit to herself—the one about how she might have a crush on her best friend.

When Sana and her family move to California she begins to wonder if it’s finally time for some honesty, especially after she meets Jamie Ramirez. Jamie is beautiful and smart and unlike anyone Sana’s ever known. There are just a few problems: Sana’s new friends don’t trust Jamie’s crowd; Jamie’s friends clearly don’t want her around anyway; and a sweet guy named Caleb seems to have more-than-friendly feelings for her. Meanwhile, her dad’s affair is becoming too obvious to ignore anymore.

Sana always figured that the hardest thing would be to tell people that she wants to date a girl, but as she quickly learns, telling the truth is easy… what comes after it, though, is a whole lot more complicated. 

I have mixed feelings about It’s Not Like It’s a Secret. On the one hand, I’m always ecstatic to find new f/f books, and the fact the main character is not only queer but also a person of colour overjoys me. Books like this are very slowly filling a gaping void in publishing, and I’m so, so happy to see them being published. I wanted so badly to like this book, but...it was overall pretty meh for me. It was slow and way too long, and the plot was all over the place. It also had the one consistent...flaw? Drawback?...I keep finding in contemporary f/f: there was very little focus on the romance. I JUST WANT A F/F ROMANCE WHERE THE FOCUS IS THE ROMANCE, WHY IS THAT SO MUCH TO ASK FOR?!

Ahem. Anyway...

Sana was Japanese-American and I enjoyed learning a bit about the culture and traditions, largely through Sana’s interactions with her mother. I liked that when Sana’s family moved from the all-white community she grew up in to California, she finally found a place she truly fit and felt comfortable. I appreciated the open discussions about racism and stereotypes, especially among non-white groups (like, for instance, Sana’s Japanese mother had something racist to say about pretty much every ethnic group, and pretty much everyone stereotyped Sana and her friends as ‘smart Asians’ and Jamie and her friends as ‘lazy Mexicans’). It’s so important to talk about racism in an open way and to shine a light on people’s preconceived notions, incorrect perceptions, and prejudices...but...at times it felt like a story more about race than anything else. There was such a heavy emphasis put on the racism and stereotypes, and I know they’re important subjects and it’s important to see them addressed, especially in YA, but at times it felt like you couldn’t go more than a few pages without someone making a racist comment or the focus being brought back to some form of stereotype. I know I’m privileged in that I can’t imagine what it must be like to live with that kind of prejudice and hear those comments or know people are judging you based on the colour of your skin, but the heavy focus on racism added to the overall feeling of the plot being scattered.

On to the romance: Yay lesbians! Double yay for lesbians in YA! But...I wanted MORE. So much more. The interactions between Sana and Jamie were okay but not memorable. Half the time they were together, Sana was worried about Jamie’s friends and what they thought of her. I’d have liked to get to know a bit more about Jamie and WHY Sana liked her so much. It was an insta-crush, which is fine, but I didn’t feel like it ever went deeper than that, even when they were together. Then there was the...love triangle? I’m not sure you could totally call it that, but I’m going to since it led to a cringe-worthy cheating storyline. It’s pretty sad that in an f/f book, I liked the opposite sex non-love-interest better than the gay love interest. I understand that in YA books it’s important that the characters are flawed and make mistakes because that’s realistic, and that’s how they learn and grow. I usually appreciate deeply flawed characters because it often leads to poignant lessons and growth, but Sana did so many questionable things it had me shaking my head and rolling my eyes more than rooting for her. Because of that and because I feel like we didn’t get to know much about Jamie, the romance fell flat for me. I also felt like Sana didn't learn that much or grow that much as a person, which was a bit disappointing.

Overall, I was underwhelmed by It’s Not Like it’s a Secret. I appreciated the diversity, but honestly if it hadn’t been for that, there would have been almost no story/tension/conflict. I wasn’t able to connect with the characters, and the story - especially the second half - dragged. This story wasn’t for me, but as always, I encourage people to decide for themselves if it sounds like something that would interest them.

               

Have you read It's Not Like it's a Secret? What did you think? If you haven't read it, do you plan to? What's the last book that left you feeling underwhelmed?

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Review: Love, Hate, and Other Lies We Told by Deirdre Riordan Hall

Love, Hate, and Other Lies We Told by Deirdre Riordan Hall
Series: Standalone
Published: January 17th, 2017
Publisher: Self-published
300 pages (eARC)
Genre: Contemporary Women’s Fiction
Acquired this book: From the author in exchange for honest consideration
Warning: May contain spoilers
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Let go from her job and feeling lost, Navy Carrington takes a position as coffee-girl at a publicity firm. Their newest client is Carrick Kennely, the former love of her life and her fiercest adversary. She thought she'd let go of the past by playing it safe with book boyfriends—and avoiding frustratingly sexy guys like Carrick.

When Navy's roommate finds the Boyfriend Book, a silly relic leftover from Navy's teens, it prompts a dare; Navy is to go on five dates and pick one to be her Valentine. Despite her reservations, she can't say no, especially if it means proving to herself and Carrick that she can move on.

Navy chronicles her brief romantic entanglements with the Hottie in 7G, the Man-Bun-Barista, the Gym Stud, and the Book Boyfriend who turns out to be a toad—not the kind that when kissed turns into a prince—on The Boyfriend Book Blog. She doesn't want to let her readers or herself down, but as Valentine's Day nears, none of the guys comes close to being her one true love.

Except Carrick. He’s infuriating, attractive, confusing, catnip…and it turns out he has a secret.

With a love letter and a plane ticket in hand, Navy leaves her baggage behind and must decide between love, hate, and the lies she told to protect her fragile heart.

Having read and loved Dierdre Riordan Hall’s Young Adult novels Sugar and Pearl, I was excited to read her debut women’s fiction novel, Love, Hate, and Other Lies We Told. For that reason, and because the author is a truly lovely person, I wanted to love the book, but...it hurts my heart to say this...I didn’t. I’ve been reading a lot of women’s fiction lately, and rom-coms are totally my jam, both in book and movie form, so I had high hopes for this one. While the story had good elements and a fun premise, what kept me from ever fully connecting to it was Navy herself. There were things I sympathized with - mostly her feelings of being lost and unsure - but for the most part, I just couldn’t connect with her. She frustrated me from the beginning with how she constantly compared herself to Kat and laid out all the things she wasn’t - beautiful, fun, able to trust, successful, etc. She focused so much on negative things and on the past, and refused to move on. Every time she took one step forward, she ended up taking two or three steps back, and she was constantly going over how she’d been hurt, how she couldn’t trust men, especially Carrick, how she kept herself guarded, etc. I did appreciate her ultimate growth and how she really came into her own, but the journey was rocky.

All that being said, my issues with Navy could totally be ‘me things’ that might not bother other people. There were things I enjoyed about the book, such as Navy and Kat’s friendship. I’m a sucker for strong female friendships that have their ups and down, but where the characters ultimately love each other unconditionally. Navy’s dates were also fun and often had me smiling...and glad I’m not part of the dating scene!

I enjoyed the overall premise of Love, Hate, and Other Lies We Told. Navy was an avid reader and had far more book boyfriends than real boyfriends - both of which I can relate to. I think many of us live inside fictional worlds for various reasons, and sometimes forget there’s a whole real world out there waiting to be discovered and lived in. It was nice to see Navy maintaining her love of books and book boyfriends while realizing she can still have a real and fulfilling life outside the pages.

Despite my issues, Love, Hate, and Other Lies We Told was a book with a fun premise, interesting characters, and a lot of real-life emotion. If you’re a fan of women’s fiction, I’d encourage you to give this one a shot!
 

 

{My review of Sugar || My review of Pearl}

Have you read Love, Hate, and Other Lies We Told? What did you think? If you haven't read it, do you plan to? Have you read any women's fiction lately that you'd recommend?

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Review: Keeping Her Secret by Sarah Nicolas

Keeping Her Secret by Sarah Nicolas
Series: Endless Summer
Published: August 22nd, 2016
Publisher: Entangled Crush
220 pages (eARC)
Genre: Contemporary YA/LGBTQ
Acquired this book: Via NetGalley in exchange for honest consideration
Warning: May contain spoilers
{GoodReads || Buy this book: Amazon || Chapters/Indigo}

The last person Riya Johnson expected to run into at her new summer camp is Courtney Chastain—her childhood best friend and the girl who broke her heart after a secret, mind-blowing, life-altering kiss. She definitely didn’t expect to be sharing a bunk bed with her for four long weeks.

Courtney has what every girl wants—she’s beautiful, rich, and the object of every boy’s desire at Camp Pine Ridge. Too bad none of them make her feel an iota of what Riya’s kiss did all those years ago. But Courtney needs to uphold appearances at all costs—even if it means instigating an all-out prank war with Riya as her main target.

Neither girl can stop thinking about the other…but that doesn’t mean they can give up past hurts and take a chance on a future together.

My first thought when I discovered Keeping Her Secret: a romance about two girls falling for each other at summer camp? Count me in! It’s no secret I’ll read just about anything f/f, so throw in the added bonus of a fun setting (I always wanted to go to sleep-away camp), and I’m in.

There was a lot to like about Keeping Her Secret. I enjoyed the dual POV and think it worked well for this story. It was important to get both girls’ perspectives to see how they were feeling and what they were thinking about certain situations. They were very different, so it was interesting to see how they perceived each other, especially when they didn’t vocalize certain things to each other.

One thing I really appreciated was the exploration of how - and why - coming-out experiences are different for everyone. Riya was open about and comfortable with her sexuality. I was so happy to see a bisexual main character - it’s still so rare to see on-page rep, especially in a main character. Courtney, on the other hand, didn’t even realize she was gay. She’d kissed a lot of boys and never felt anything, but it was like she had this mental block that prevented her from even considering she might like girls, even though she’d liked the kiss she and Riya shared years ago. It was Courtney’s growth I appreciated most. She had a lot to figure out - not just her sexuality, but her future as well. She was popular, rich, beautiful, and talented, but there was more to her than met the eye. She tried to seem tough and mean (and at times she really was just plain mean, rude, and entitled), but she was worried what people would think of her, and afraid of the control her parents had over her, especially when it came to her future. With her parents being rich and powerful lawyers living in the south, she was certain they wouldn’t accept a gay daughter. I enjoyed watching her work through things and gain some strength and independence.

I also really liked the side characters, especially Courtney’s twin brother, Colt (he was probably my favourite character - loyal, kind, caring, supportive, would do anything for his sister) and Riya’s new friend Dee.

So why only three stars? I couldn’t connect to the characters. And because I couldn’t connect to them, my emotions never went beyond the surface. I wanted the girls to end up together, but I wasn’t rooting for them the way I do for characters I truly love and connect to. I think part of it could be the fact there was so much angst and drama. It seemed never-ending at times. Things would get smoothed over, but then there’d be another incident or misunderstanding and the animosity between the girls would amp up yet again. I get that the characters were emotional, hormonal teenagers and they were trying to figure stuff out, and I also get that the setting of the story made for limited plot potential, but it did affect my overall enjoyment of the book. This could just be a ‘me thing’ though, and might not bother other people. This might be one of those instances where the fact I’m not a teenager and haven’t been for awhile comes into play!
       
If you’re looking for a quick, cute, character-driven summer read about self-discovery and acceptance, be sure to check out Keeping Her Secret.

Have you read Keeping Her Secret? What did you think? If you haven't read it, do you plan to? Did you ever go to summer camp?

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Review: Ask Me How I Got Here by Christine Heppermann

Ask Me How I Got Here by Christine Heppermann
Series: Standalone
Published: May 3rd, 2016
Publisher: Greenwillow
240 pages (eARC)
Genre: Contemporary Young Adult
Acquired this book: Via Edelweiss in exchange for honest consideration
Warning: May contain spoilers
{GoodReads || Buy this book: Amazon || Chapters/Indigo}
 

Addie has always known what she was running toward. In cross-country, in life, in love. Until she and her boyfriend—her sensitive, good-guy boyfriend—are careless one night and she ends up pregnant. Addie makes the difficult choice to have an abortion. And after that—even though she knows it was the right decision for her—nothing is the same anymore. She doesn’t want anyone besides her parents and her boyfriend to know what happened; she doesn’t want to run cross-country; she can’t bring herself to be excited about anything. Until she reconnects with Juliana, a former teammate who’s going through her own dark places. 

I’ve only read two other books told in verse: To Be Perfectly Honest and What My Mother Doesn’t Know by Sonya Sones. Since I enjoyed them, I was intrigued by Ask Me How I Got Here when I discovered it on Edelweiss and saw that it was told in verse. While I enjoyed the style and the overall messages of the book, the story felt rushed to me and I wasn’t able to really connect with the characters or the story.

Ask Me How I Got Here deals with a lot of serious issues and serious topics: teen pregnancy, abortion, sexuality, feminism, life choices, the hypocrisy and sexism in religion. Despite dealing with all these things, it never felt like an ‘issue book’, which I appreciated. Addie was smart and funny, and I enjoyed seeing things from her perspective. The pregnancy and abortion happened with little fanfare (which seemed like a missed opportunity for a lot of real emotion, in my opinion), and the story dealt mainly with the aftermath and the unexpected changes Addie experienced. She lost interest in cross-country running, which was once her life, distanced herself from her family and friends, and found it difficult to enjoy the things she once did. I sympathized with her, but never felt myself truly connecting with her. There were times when I thought ‘I know I should be feeling more’, but I just didn’t.

SPOILER (highlight to view): One of my favourite parts of the book was Addie developing feelings for an old friend and former cross-country teammate, Juliana. It was unexpected, and the moments between Addie and Juliana were some of my favourites. I hadn’t heard anyone talking about this book being LGBTQ - probably because of spoilers, but at the same time, I feel going into it knowing the MC is bisexual would be a draw for many - so it really was a wonderful surprise.

Ask Me How I Got Here is a quick, enjoyable read, but it’s not one of those books that will stick with me. That being said, I would recommend it for fans of contemporary YA who enjoy stories about self-discovery that explore themes of sexuality, religion, and feminism.

Have you read Ask Me How I Got Here? What did you think? If you haven't read it, do you plan to? Do you enjoy books told in verse? Do you have a favourite?

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Review: Chasing Spring by RS Grey

Chasing Spring by RS Grey
Series: Standalone
Published: February 1st, 2016
Publisher: Self-published
304 pages (eARC)
Genre: Contemporary Young Adult
Acquired this book: From the author in exchange for honest consideration
Warning: May contain spoilers
{GoodReads || Buy this book: Amazon || Amazon Canada}

I thought I’d left Blackwater, Texas behind for good. I didn’t belong in the small town, but my dad wouldn’t listen. He dragged me back home in his beat-up truck and dropped a bomb along the way: Chase Matthews was moving in with us. He was the golden boy of my high school, my former best friend, and the last person I wanted sleeping across the hall. His presence was too great a reminder of the ghosts I was trying to forget.

I didn’t ask for a hero. I don’t want to be saved.
To me, Lilah Calloway meant late nights sneakin’ out, moonlit hair, and sparklers in July. She was my best friend until the day she left and I’d assumed Blackwater had seen the last of her. Then, like a tempest, she rolled back into town for the final half of senior year. The chopped hair and dark devil-may-care attitude warned most people away, but I knew if I fought hard enough, I could find the lost girl.

I didn’t want to be her hero. Some girls don’t need to be saved.

RS Grey has been on my radar for awhile now, and while I’ve owned a copy of With This Heart for several months, Chasing Spring was actually the first book of hers I’ve read. Between the beautiful cover and the synopsis, I was intrigued, and I’m glad I’ve finally read one of her books. It won’t be my last!

I liked the way the story was told alternately between Lilah and Chase, and then going back in time, first to when Lilah’s mom was a little girl, and then years later when she was a troubled addict who abandoned her family and made a mess of her life. It was a unique way to give back story and also give insight into Lilah and Chase as they are today at seventeen.

I’m not sure what it was, but there was something that prevented me from truly connecting to this story or its characters. As I was reading, I kept thinking ‘I should be feeling more here - my heart should be breaking, I should be tearing up’, etc., but I never really went past surface emotion while reading. I liked Lilah and Chase, but didn’t connect to them, and found it hard to root for them. There was a part of my heart/brain that knew they should be together - they had shared history, they knew each other well, they’d been through a lot together - but I don’t think there was enough of them together on-page for me to fall for them as a couple. They were barely friends when Lilah came back, then they were, then they couldn’t be together, but then they were anyway, and through it all, we rarely actually saw them together.

Chasing Spring is a story about family, friendship, redemption, and overcoming your demons. While it fell a bit flat for me, I seem to be in the minority, so as always I recommend checking it out for yourself if it seems like something you’d like. I enjoyed Grey’s writing, and will be reading more of her books soon.

Have you read Chasing Spring? What did you think? If you haven't read it, do you plan to? Have you read any of RS's other books?

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Review: The Madness Underneath by Maureen Johnson

The Madness Underneath by Maureen Johnson

Series: Shades of London #2

Published: February 26th, 2013

Publisher: Putnam Juvenile

290 pages (hardcover)

Genre: Young Adult Paranormal

Acquired this book: From the library

Warning: May contain spoilers

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{Read my review of The Name of the Star}

After her near-fatal run-in with the Jack the Ripper copycat, Rory Deveaux has been living in Bristol under the close watch of her parents. So when her therapist suddenly suggests she return to Wexford, Rory jumps at the chance to get back to her friends. But Rory's brush with the Ripper touched her more than she thought possible: she's become a human terminus, with the power to eliminate ghosts on contact. She soon finds out that the Shades--the city's secret ghost-fighting police--are responsible for her return. The Ripper may be gone, but now there is a string of new inexplicable deaths threatening London. Rory has evidence that the deaths are no coincidence. Something much more sinister is going on, and now she must convince the squad to listen to her before it's too late.

 

I had high hopes for The Name of the Star. It was one of those books I was ridiculously excited about from the moment I saw it, mostly because I have a bizarre fascination with Jack the Ripper. I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it, but when I finally did, I was slightly disappointed. Not like ‘Nooooooo, whyyyyyyyy?!’ disappointed - the book was good, and I liked the unique concept, but it wasn’t as good as I’d hoped. I went into The Madness Underneath with no expectations. I was curious what would happen to Rory and the squad next, but I didn’t have high hopes like I did when reading the first book…and that’s a good thing, because this book was very meh for me.

It started out well. The initial scene was wonderfully creepy and intriguing, but after that it took forever for anything else to happen. The story had moments of excitement that basically went nowhere and were kind of pointless. Not much happened in the entire book, and when something did happen, it was kind of random, and again, didn’t lead anywhere. It felt like a bunch of things thrown together and tied loosely, but not much actual plot. I wasn’t able to get interested or invested until toward the end, but when I finally got emotionally invested it was because something drastic and awful happened (which I’ll get to in a minute).

As with the first book, I liked Rory for the most part. She had a great voice. She’s funny and kooky, and while some people might not appreciate the almost ‘stream of consciousness’ feel to her thoughts, I found it all believable, plus amusing. There was quite a lot of angst in this book, which was mostly understandable, considering a) Rory went through hell in the first book, and b) she’s a teenager. She was impulsive, self-centred, and made some horrendous mistakes, but it was mostly believable. I keep saying ‘mostly’ and that’s because there were some things she did that seemed really weird and out of character, and went beyond impulsive and into ‘what the hell is wrong with you?’ territory. There wasn’t much development or growth on her part, and the book was basically The Rory Show - all about her and very little about the other characters. In the first book I loved the secondary characters, but with the exception of learning a bit more about Stephen, the secondary characters seemed to just sort of…be there.

Then there was the ending. *sigh* An ending like that should make me absolutely itch to get my hands on the next book, but it doesn’t. I was upset (half sad, half pissed), but it was almost a ‘too little, too late’ situation for me. It took so long for anything interesting to happen, and then when it did it was like a simultaneous punch to the gut and slap to the face. I’ll read the third book, but I’m not dying to get my hands on it like I feel I should be after an ending that dramatic.

Overall, The Madness Underneath was just okay for me. I still like the setting (*goes all heart-eyes over London*) and the unique concept of the ghost police, and it had a few creeptastic moments, but that didn’t make up for the lack of plot or character development, or how the secondary characters, who were wonderfully vivid in the first book, seemed to get shoved aside in this book.
 

Have you read The Name of the Star or The Madness Underneath? What did you think? If you haven't read them, do you plan to? Do you have a favourite story or series about ghosts? Let's talk here or on Twitter!

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