Review: It Started with Goodbye by Christina June

 I am so excited to share my stop on the It Started With Goodbye tour!  June's debut novel does not disappoint!

I received an ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Synopsis

Sixteen-year-old Tatum Elsea is bracing for the worst summer of her life. After being falsely accused of a crime, she’s stuck under stepmother-imposed house arrest and her BFF’s gone ghost. Tatum fills her newfound free time with community service by day and working at her covert graphic design business at night (which includes trading emails with a cute cello-playing client). When Tatum discovers she’s not the only one in the house keeping secrets, she finds she has the chance to make amends with her family and friends. Equipped with a new perspective, and assisted by her feisty step-abuela-slash-fairy-godmother, Tatum is ready to start fresh and maybe even get her happy ending along the way.

This book is available from: AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | BOOK DEPOSITORY

My Thoughts

It was so hard to adult while I was reading this book!  All I wanted to do was read!  I fell in love with the characters and found the story so very easy to relate to.  

Let's talk about the MC.  Tate is a very strong and very stressed teenager.  Like most teenage girls, she sees the world around her only through her filter.  She has a difficult time looking outside of herself to the way the world affects those around her.  She is definitely oblivious to the effects that her choices have on others.  The best part of her character, however, is that she overcomes all of these things.  She grows in a way that we hope most teenagers do.  I would LOVE to share this book with my students as the bildungsroman motif is one that they are currently living out.  

Additionally, Tate's relationship with SK was so very organic!  I loved that it grew and matured in a very realistic way instead of them being just thrown together.  It was a reminder that love can develop in some of the most unlikely ways.  

Lastly, I ADORED the way that June approached the Cinderella tale.  I think she did a wonderful job of including all of the mystical parts while still keeping the story very true to life.  Did real magic happen?  No.  Did it seem like magic to Tate and Tilly?  You better believe it!  The prince was perfect and the keychain was a wonderful alternative to the glass slipper!  June promises her readers a wonderful tale and what she delivered was more magical than I had truly expected.

My Rating

About the Author

Christina June writes young adult contemporary fiction when she’s not writing college recommendation letters during her day job as a school counselor. She loves the little moments in life that help someone discover who they’re meant to become – whether it’s her students or her characters.

Christina is a voracious reader, loves to travel, eats too many cupcakes, and hopes to one day be bicoastal – the east coast of the US and the east coast of Scotland. She lives just outside Washington DC with her husband and daughter.

Her debut novel, IT STARTED WITH GOODBYE, was published by Blink/HarperCollins on May 9, 2017.

WEBSITE: https://christinajune.com/
TWITTER: @ChristinaJuneYA
GOODREADS: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/13987227.Christina_June
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/ChristinaJuneYA/

INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/christinajuneya/

PINTEREST: https://www.pinterest.com/ChristinaJuneYA/

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Three Reasons to Read A List of Cages by Robin Roe

Title: A List of Cages

Author: Robin Roe
Publisher: Hyperion
Publication Date: January 2017
Genre: YA, Realistic Fiction, Mental Illness Awareness

I won a copy of this book through a giveaway.  Neither the author nor publisher are associated with this review.

Due to graphic scenes of violence, this book may not be suitable for all audiences.

Description from GoodReads
When Adam Blake lands the best elective ever in his senior year, serving as an aide to the school psychologist, he thinks he’s got it made. Sure, it means a lot of sitting around, which isn’t easy for a guy with ADHD, but he can’t complain, since he gets to spend the period texting all his friends. Then the doctor asks him to track down the troubled freshman who keeps dodging her, and Adam discovers that the boy is Julian—the foster brother he hasn’t seen in five years.

Adam is ecstatic to be reunited. At first, Julian seems like the boy he once knew. He’s still kindhearted. He still writes stories and loves picture books meant for little kids. But as they spend more time together, Adam realizes that Julian is keeping secrets, like where he hides during the middle of the day, and what’s really going on inside his house. Adam is determined to help him, but his involvement could cost both boys their lives…

A List of Reasons

In her novel, Roe presents us with lists of her own.  It seems only fitting that I provide you with the top five reasons you should run out and purchase this book right now!

1.  Roe's writing style!

OMG!  I have waited a long time to read a book that I fall into as easily as I fell into A List of Cages!  Roe's descriptive style encourages the reader to not only understand each event in the book, but to experience it and to care about it.  Rather than leaving her audience feeling mildly upset, Roe destroys her audience and truly forces readers to think.

2. A Poignant Description of a Real Problem

Domestic violence is a common problem.  Because we hear about it so often, abuse can become a joke to younger generations who have had the fortune of never experiencing this problem.   I am happy to see a book written for young adults that truly brings this problem to attention.  Roe does a wonderful job demonstrating the abuse, how to respond if someone tells you they are being abused, and the importance of reporting cases of domestic violence.

3. Role Models

Adam and Emerald are every day ordinary kids.  However, each one shows that it is important to stand up for your beliefs and to take care of the people around you.  Many of the students I have worked with only see themselves as boring people.  They refuse to see that the seemingly small choices can make a world of difference for someone else.  

But, seriously, why are you still reading my review!  GO BUY THIS BOOK!  GO NOW!

My Rating:

About the Author

Robin Roe is the author of A LIST OF CAGES, which has received starred reviews from Booklist, Kirkus, School Library Journal, Shelf Awareness, and Publishers Weekly. She has a bachelor’s degree from Cornell University and a master’s from Harvard. She counseled adolescents in Boston before

she moved to Dallas to run a mentoring program for at-risk teens.

Robin loves connecting with her readers and can be found on Twitter @robinroewriter. You can also use the contact form on her website to send her a message: www.robinroewriter.com.

Book Blitz: The Unseen by Jacob Devlin

The Unseen
Jacob Devlin
(Order of the Bell #2)
Published by: Blaze Publishing
Publication date: May 9th 2017
Genres: Fairy Tales, Fantasy, Young Adult

Crescenzo and his friends may have survived their confounding journey to the enchanted realms of Florindale, but now they find themselves fighting for their sanity and lives while stuck on the other side of the very mirror they set out to destroy.
With their families trapped by a former ally with a crippling fear of the queen, Enzo, Rosana, and Zack must play a deadly game in Wonderland, where shadows are on the move, kings are at war, and one of them wants Rosana dead.
As darkness hovers over the world, the friends must lean on each other and stop the King of Hearts from following through on Avoria’s orders: Break them.

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo

Sequel to:

—

EXCERPT:

Zack wrinkled his brows. “Who are you? Why have I come to see you? I don’t even know you.”

“You wouldn’t know of Madame Esme. But she certainly knows of you. Lady Fortune keeps painting your name in the cosmos. It would appear there is an important role for you in the journeys of Pinocchio’s son.”
“Enzo,” Zack said quietly.
“Yes.” A chill rippled through the air, and Madame Esme cast a wary gaze around the tent. “Now, Madame Esme has very limited time to speak to you. Please listen carefully.” She lowered her voice, reached across the table, and then seized Zack’s elbow. “I have predicted the death of one of your own . . . the son of Pinocchio. Madame Esme cannot be sure of the circumstances, but it is to take place soon in the realm of wonder.”
Zack yanked his elbow out of Madame Esme’s grip. “What are you saying? Why would you tell me something like that, even if it were true? That’s . . . an evil thing to say.”
The woman edged forward, impossibly calm given the horrible news she delivered. “Madame Esme is never wrong, Son of Pan. Oh, how often she wishes she were! Avoria arrived seven days ago, and what a mess we have become! The lands of Roma are falling to ruins once more. The Grand Canyon crumbles to dust as we speak. Avoria seeks a territory in which to build her citadel, and nothing will ever be the same. But the son of Pinocchio is destined to lead us all to battle. Thus, we need you, Son of Pan. We need you all to dethrone Avoria and restore peace. But if The Carver dies, hope dies with him.”

Author Bio:
When Jacob Devlin was four years old, he would lounge around in Batman pajamas and make semi-autobiographical picture books about an adventurous python named Jake the Snake. Eventually, he traded his favorite blue crayon for a black pen, and he never put it down. When not reading or writing, Jacob loves practicing his Italian, watching stand-up comedy, going deaf at rock concerts, and geeking out at comic book conventions. He does most of these things in southern Arizona.

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Youtube

GIVEAWAY!
a Rafflecopter giveaway