Contemporary Romance Reading Challenge: Top Ten Romances

The 2016 Contemporary Romance Reading Challenge is hosted by Jess at Gone With the Words and Danielle at Love First Page. Every month, they have a weekly topic related to contemporary romance and this month the topic is Top Ten Contemporary Romances.

Contemporary romance is my favourite genre so it was torture to whittle down this list. I’m sticking to YA and NA because if I added in Adult, I’d never be able to cut it back to ten.

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

Amy & Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson

My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpactrick

The Start of Me and You by Emery Lord

Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

Upside Down by Lia Riley

Trust the Focus by Megan Erickson

Swimming to Tokyo by Brenda St John Brown

The Boys of Summer by CJ Duggan

I Do by AJ Pine

What are your favourite contemporary romances? See any of your favourites on my list? If you're participating in the Contemporary Romance Reading Challenge and you did this month's topic (or a wrap-up) feel free to leave a link in the comments so I can visit you in return!

 {Facebook || Twitter || GoodReads || Instagram || Pinterest || Author blog}

Review: The Start of Me and You by Emery Lord

The Start of Me and You by Emery Lord 
Series: Standalone
Published: March 31st, 2015
Publisher: Bloomsbury
384 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Contemporary Young Adult
Acquired this book: From the library
Warning: May contain spoilers
{GoodReads || Buy this book: Amazon || Chapters/Indigo}

 {Read my review of Open Road Summer}

It’s been a year since it happened—when Paige Hancock’s first boyfriend died in an accident. After shutting out the world for two years, Paige is finally ready for a second chance at high school . . . and she has a plan. First: Get her old crush, Ryan Chase, to date her—the perfect way to convince everyone she’s back to normal. Next: Join a club—simple, it’s high school after all. But when Ryan’s sweet, nerdy cousin, Max, moves to town and recruits Paige for the Quiz Bowl team (of all things!) her perfect plan is thrown for a serious loop. Will Paige be able to face her fears and finally open herself up to the life she was meant to live?

 
Sometimes you pick up a book at the exact right time and it consumes all your thoughts and emotions for the time it takes you to read it, and then even for awhile after that. The Start of Me and You was one of those books for me. Lord’s debut, Open Road Summer, was one of my favourite books of last year. I couldn’t imagine loving The Start of Me and You more (especially since I’ve dealt with some disappointing ‘second book syndrome’ lately), but I did. The Start of Me and You is not only one of my favourite books of 2015 so far, it’s made it onto my list of all-time favourites.

The Start of Me and You had everything I love: a fantastic main character who’s easy to relate to, friendships that are strong and healthy, real emotion, nerdy references, tons of character growth, humour, an adorable boy to swoon over, and realistic situations. I laughed and cried in equal measure through the course of this book. It’s been awhile since a book made me giggle the way this one did, and it’s also been awhile since I cried so much while reading - happy tears, sad tears, and tears of understanding.

I adored Paige. She had such an authentic voice, and there were so many ways I connected with her. Having experienced grief myself, her emotions regarding loss and recovery rang true for me. The pain of losing someone sticks with you forever and affects so much of your life, and it’s hard not to feel guilt at times for simply trying to move on with your life, heal, and really live. It was particularly difficult for her because she didn’t know or date Aaron long before he died, and yet she’s stuck with the label of 'the girl whose boyfriend died' and always wondering what might have happened if they’d really had a chance. That would be devastating at any time of life, but especially when you’re young and still trying to figure out so many things about life and love.

I loved Paige’s friends. They had the ideal friendship - not perfect by any means, but they loved each other unconditionally and were always there for each other. I wish there were more friendships like this in books. I know friendships, especially in your teens, can be unhealthy or rocky or they fall apart, but we see so much of that in books, it’s nice to see friends who stick together, support each other, and never give up on each other. There were so many beautiful moments between Paige and her friends that made me tear up or even start to full-on cry. I also absolutely adored Paige’s friendship with Max. MAX. Max, in all his nerdy glory, was pretty much perfect. I loved that he was an unapologetic nerd, and that even though that’s all Paige saw at first, she quickly learned what a genuinely good guy Max was, and that there was much more to him than just being incredibly smart. There were other great side characters, too: Paige’s grandmother, Ryan, and Ms Pepper in particular all added to Paige’s life and growth.

The Start of Me and You is a beautiful story about friendship, family, and love in its many forms. It’s about healing, learning to live, and not being afraid to live. Emery Lord has a knack for writing characters you wish were your best friends, and boys you wish were yours to fall in love with for real. I got this book from the library, but I’ll definitely be buying a copy of my own, because I loved it so much I know I’ll want to read again.  

Have you read The Start of Me and You? What did you think? If you haven't read it, do you plan to? What are some of your favourite books about friendship? Let's talk here or on Twitter!

 {Facebook || Twitter || GoodReads || Instagram || Pinterest || Author blog}

Wanderlust Wednesday: The Road Trip Book Edition

Check out my previous Wanderlust Wednesday posts.

I love road trips. As soon as the weather turns nice every year, I start itching to take a road trip. There's something wonderful about being in a car with someone you love, music blasting, windows down, inhibitions lowered. Since I love road trips so much, it's only natural I'd love books about road trips. Whenever I read a synopsis and see the words 'road trip', I automatically add it to my TBR. The best road trip books are as much about the emotional journey as the physical one. There's just something about being with someone in such a small space. You can learn a lot about them - things they tell you and things they don't. How do they handle stressful situations? Do they have annoying habits? Is their taste in music amazing or does it suck? I think the music and the snacks people choose for a road trip says a lot about them. ;-)

These six books are very different, but they have a few key things in common: amazing characters who grow and learn a lot, the ability to make you both laugh and cry, and a fun journey that spans many miles.

Amy & Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson {My review}

One of my favourite road trip books, and one of my favourite books, period. This is always the first book I recommend to people looking for road trip books (or contemporary YA or sweet, swoony romance, or basically anything...). Amy and Roger are fantastic characters, plus they meet a bunch of fun people along the way, and have some interesting adventures. This book is very sweet, very swoony, plus it kicks you right in the feels in ways you're not expecting. Oh, and the playlists and drawings are epic and make the book that much more special and memorable.

Open Road Summer by Emery Lord {My review}

Friendship, romance, country music, and a tour bus. This book gets a ton of hype, and with good reason. I love Reagan, Taylor Swift...I mean Dee, and Matt. There aren't enough books that showcase friendships as much as romance, but this book does it so well, plus it's beautifully written.

Trust the Focus by Megan Erickson {My review}

This was my most recent road trip book and I'm still swooning. Seriously. Justin and Landry's story is beautiful. I felt like I was right there in that RV with them while they travelled across the States to honour Justin's dad. Friendship, romance, humour, sexytimes, swoons, and realistic obstacles that tugged at my heartstrings and made it impossible not to root for these two. This is one of my new go-to books when I recommend not only road trip books, but also LGBTQ books.

 

In Honor by Jessi Kirby {GoodReads}

A sweet car, a bad boy, and shared grief...this is another road trip book that tugs on your heartstrings. Jessi Kirby has a way of writing books that make you really think about your life, your choices, and what truly matters, and In Honor was no exception.

Kiss the Morning Star by Elissa Janine Hoole {My review}

In my review for this one, I said it was and wasn't what I was expecting. I loved the road trip aspect, and watching Anna and Kat's friendship turn into something more. I was even expecting the religion aspect from the synopsis, but I went in wary, because books with religious themes don't always sit well with me. Strangely enough, that ended up being one of the things I loved most about the book, because it was dealt with in such a real, honest way, as was the relationship between the girls, and the grief Anna was experiencing. It wasn't always easy to read, but sometimes the books that make you uncomfortable end up being the best kinds of books, and that was definitely the case for me with Kiss the Morning Star.

 

That One Summer by CJ Duggan {My review} 

 

That One Summer has one major difference from the rest of the books on this list: the others are set in America, but this one is set in Australia. I love the Summer series and the Onslow gang, and it was great to see them all together on this road trip. There were a lot of ups and downs along the journey, but there were plenty of fun moments too. This is also another book that showcases not just a swoony, sexy romance, but also really great friendships.

  

Have you read any of these? What are some of your favourite road trip books? What's the best road trip you ever took? What would your dream road trip be? Let's talk here or on Twitter!

   
{Facebook || Twitter || GoodReads || Instagram || Pinterest || Author blog}

Review: Open Road Summer by Emery Lord

Open Road Summer by Emery Lord

Series: Standalone

Published: April 15th, 2014

Publisher: Walker

342 pages (eARC)

Genre: Contemporary young adult

Acquired this book: From the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Warning: May contain spoilers

{GoodReads || Buy this book: Amazon || Book Depository || Chapters/Indigo}

After breaking up with her bad-news boyfriend, Reagan O’Neill is ready to leave her rebellious ways behind. . . and her best friend, country superstar Lilah Montgomery, is nursing a broken heart of her own. Fortunately, Lilah’s 24-city tour is about to kick off, offering a perfect opportunity for a girls-only summer of break-up ballads and healing hearts. But when Matt Finch joins the tour as its opening act, his boy-next-door charm proves difficult for Reagan to resist, despite her vow to live a drama-free existence. This summer, Reagan and Lilah will navigate the ups and downs of fame and friendship as they come to see that giving your heart to the right person is always a risk worth taking. A fresh new voice in contemporary romance, Emery Lord’s gorgeous writing hits all the right notes.

 

My review: This book was pretty much perfect so GO READ IT NOW.

Seriously though, Open Road Summer really is pretty much perfect. It came at the exact right time for me, between being in a reading slump, dealing with real life issues, and just basically feeling down. I needed an escape, and I got it in this book. It paired gorgeous writing with an amazing portrayal of friendship, a lot of character growth, a sweet romance, country music, and an epic road trip. 

I appreciated how the story basically launched right in. It would have been easy to give a ton of back-story right away, but it opened with a scene of Reagan and her best friend, Dee - a country music starlet - about to hit the road for the summer on a cross-country tour. We learned why Reagan was going on tour with Dee, and we learned a bit about the girls’ friendship, but it didn’t get bogged down in details. Right from the first page, I was completely hooked by Lord’s simple yet beautiful writing style, and I liked Reagan and Dee instantly. 

Since Nashville is currently one of my favourite TV shows, I loved the country music aspect of this story. I’m not sure if Lord modeled Dee after Taylor Swift, but that’s who I pictured throughout the book. She was sweet, humble, down to earth, and wrote honest, age-appropriate lyrics. Dee was the type of girl you want to be best friends with, and Reagan was lucky enough to hold that title. Reagan and Dee were a solid unit, almost more like family than friends. They knew each other inside and out, accepted each other’s faults, and loved each other unconditionally. Their friendship was definitely my favourite part of the book. There aren’t enough books that focus on strong, healthy female friendships; there’s so much backstabbing and fighting and hurt feelings, and while Reagan and Dee’s relationship wasn’t perfect, it was beautiful and heartwarming and made me tear up more than once.

I found myself really connecting with Reagan. I loved that she had a past; she had done stupid things, she’d made mistakes, and she’d had her heart broken. She was snarky and was the first person to admit that she’s a bitch, but she was fiercely loyal and protective of Dee, and I loved her for that. I loved her passion for photography, and the little surprises about her that were revealed throughout the story. There were a lot of bumps along the way, but she learned a lot, and it felt very authentic and realistic to me.

If you’re looking for a swoonworthy romance, Open Road Summer certainly has it. Matt Finch is one of my new favourite book boys. He was a lot like Dee - sweet and down to earth. He’d been through a lot, and he put on a good face, but underneath the jokes and the winks was a boy who was as broken as Reagan. I loved the way he challenged Reagan, and I also loved that their relationship wasn’t easy, and it wasn’t all sunshine and roses. The progression was natural and believable, and thoroughly enjoyable to watch. 

Open Road Summer made me laugh, cry, and swoon. I could easily picture myself on the road with Reagan, Dee, and Matt, and I found myself constantly wishing I was on their epic summer road trip. I ran the gamut of emotions through the course of Open Road Summer, but I was left with a big smile on my face and a feeling of hope. I would love to see these characters again…maybe a companion novel from Dee’s perspective? *hint hint Ms Lord*

 

“My therapist one told me: you are the only person who can build emotional barriers, but you’re also the only person who can topple them. Other people can’t knock down the walls you’ve built, no matter how much they love you. You have to tear them down yourself because there’s something worth seeing on the other side.”

~Quote from the ARC of Open Road Summer~

 

Have you read Open Road Summer? What did you think? If you haven't read it, do you plan to? Do you like road trip books? Books about music?

{Facebook || Twitter || GoodReads || Instagram || Pinterest || YouTube || Author blog}