Review: Stealing Parker by Miranda Kenneally

Rating: 4 stars

Release Date: October 1, 2012

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Genre: young adult contemporary romance

Format/Source: paperback, my own copy

Status: book 2 of the Hundred Oaks series

Links: Things I Can't Forget review

Racing Savannah review

audiobook reviews books 1-5

Summary:

Parker Shelton pretty much has the perfect life. She’s on her way to becoming valedictorian at Hundred Oaks High, she’s made the all-star softball team, and she has plenty of friends. Then her mother’s scandal rocks their small town and suddenly no one will talk to her.

Now Parker wants a new life.

So she quits softball. Drops twenty pounds. And she figures why kiss one guy when she can kiss three? Or four. Why limit herself to high school boys when the majorly cute new baseball coach seems especially flirty?


But how far is too far before she loses herself completely?

Audio Adventures Review + Giveaway: Hundred Oaks series by Miranda Kenneally

I recently binged all five of the existing audiobooks for Miranda Kenneally's Hundred Oaks series, and I wanted to share some bite-sized reviews for this awesome series and host a giveaway for a copy of one of the audiobooks.

Audio
Rating: 3.5 stars

Narrator: Christina Delaine

Release date: November 11, 2014

Publisher: Audible Studios
Length: 8 hours, 49 minutes

Novel

Rating: 5 stars

Pub Date: December 1, 2011

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Review:

On the one hand, I remembered why I love Catching Jordan so much—it's funny, it's swoony, it's realistic, it's got a badass girl who goes for what she wants, it showcases amazing platonic girl/guy friendships (sometimes it feels like this is a YA unicorn). On the other, DANG JORDAN JUST PICK ONE. On the third hand, YAY for a narrator who gives southern characters ACTUAL SOUTHERN ACCENTS. DANG, Y'ALL IT SHOULDN'T BE THAT HARD. On the other OTHER hand, the narrator's southern accent for some of the characters was whiny and cringe-worthy (here's looking at you, Kristen!).

But overall, still a great book with decent narration. I appreciate Christina Delaine's work in maintaining the southern accents and even giving each character their own unique tone and twist on the accent. I knew immediately who was speaking with every character, and that's always a plus for me.

Book vs audio: Stick with the book. Although I appreciate Christina Delaine including southern accents, I can see it grating on anyone who isn't used to a good southern twang. Readers will appreciate the humor just as much while reading as they would while listening to it.

Purchase Links:

 

Audio

Rating: 4 stars

Narrator: Jorjeana Marie

Release date: November 11, 2014

Publisher: Audible Studios

Length: 7 hours, 7 minutes

Novel

Rating: 5 stars

Pub Date: October 1, 2012

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Review:

On the one hand, I enjoyed listening to Stealing Parker a lot more than I initially remember enjoying the book. On the other hand, I have discovered my tastes have changed somewhat over the past few years, and part of the plot of SP is a big fat NO NO in my opinion. (man, I  just realized I have a LOT of hands!)

While Stealing Parker is not one of my favorite books in the Hundred Oaks series, I'm glad that I reread it and was able to fall in love with the story a little bit more. I definitely recommend the audiobook as Jorjeana Marie gave a wonderful performance as Parker and all the other characters as well. I'm definitely bookmarking more of her YA books to listen to in the future!

Random complaint: having a Brian and a Ryan in this book is a poor naming choice. Although it's not a problem when you read, things get a little fuzzy in the audio version. So, authors, when you're naming your characters, make sure you say them all together aloud.

Also, because of the whole changing tastes thing, and my now being an adult, I have a LOT more thoughts about the book overall so keep your eyes out because I'll have a full review of Stealing Parker to share soon.

Book vs audio: Audio. Readers might distance themselves from the emotion of Parker's story, which is a good way to become judgmental of Parker (I've done it!). Listening to the audio will keep you invested as Jorjeana Marie makes an emotional and nuanced performance.

Purchase Links:

  

Audio

Rating: 4 stars

Narrator: Holly Fielding

Release date: November 11, 2014

Publisher: Audible Studios
Length: 8 hours, 19 minutes

Novel

Rating: 4 stars

Pub Date: March 1, 2013

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Check out my review for Things I Can't Forget here.

Review:

Definitely enjoyed this one. Not only did I love the story again, the narration was pretty dang good. Holly Fielding did a great job with all the characters, making them unique and believable. I'll definitely listen to more of her work. A couple minor narrator complaints. It really does bother me when narrators pronounce mischievously incorrectly, Holly's voice for Matt changed, and originally she used a masculine tone for Jordan before changing it mid-scene. I think that's just a bit sloppy, like when Jordan first appeared, Holly didn't know she's a female character. But overall, great performance, good book.

Book vs audio: Like with Stealing Parker, reading the book creates distance between the reader and the story. Listening really puts the audience in Kate's head, and it's easier to understand her point of view and empathize with her. Give the audiobook a go.

Purchase Links:

  

Audio

Rating: 3.5 stars

Narrator: Monika Smith

Release date: November 11, 2014

Publisher: Audible Studios

Length: 7 hours, 2 minutes

Novel

Rating: 4 stars

Pub Date: December 3, 2013

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Check out my review & interview with Miranda here.

Review:

I forgot how much of a jackass Jack is in Racing Savannah. I mean, he is incredibly charming, but he's also a complete jackass. Not for the entire book or he'd be completely worthless as a love interest, but during crucial character-and-relationship-building moments, Jack shows just how much of a flawed human being he is (please don't let me scare you away. He has some really big great moments too!). Jack is definitely among my least favorite of the love interests, but his redemption arc is pretty impressive.

As for the narration, Monika Smith is possibly my least favorite of the five narrators used for the Hundred Oaks audiobooks. Her voice works for Savannah, who is pint-sized so yeah, a high-pitched, young sounding voice is believable. But her voices for Vanessa, Rory, and Jack sound little kid-ish, and that always weirds me out for a teen novel. Like, I just can't take you seriously having discussions about sex and college and relationships and careers if you sound like you're 7. Monika wasn't horrible; she just wasn't great. Hence, middle of the road audiobook for me. I've heard worse, but I've also heard a whole lot better.

Book vs audio: Mmm, this is more of a toss-up than the others. Book has a slight edge just because of Monika's young-sounding voice.

Purchase Links:

  

Audio
Rating: 3.5 stars

Narrator: Nancy Wu

Release date: July 3, 2014

Publisher: Brilliance Audio
Length: 7 hours, 41 minutes

Novel

Rating: 4 stars

Pub Date: July 15, 2014

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Review:

This is the funny thing about ratings. I originally gave the first two Hundred Oaks books 5 stars when I read them, but then I gave the others 4 stars, although Breathe, Annie, Breathe is my favorite of the series, and I like it better than Jordan and Parker. Just goes to show how books and taste can change. I definitely started rating a bit harder. But anyway. Annie is such a phenomenal book. It's very much a love story, but it's also a falling out of love story. Annie's motivations are so much fueled by the boyfriend she lost, and it's hard for her to focus on anything but him because of the depth of their relationship and the immense guilt she feels. The Hundred Oaks books all balance plenty of light fluff with the heaviness of growing up and facing adult decisions, but somehow Annie feels the heaviest, probably because it deals with death and all its finality.

That's why I'm only giving this audio 3.5 stars. Annie is a really complex book, but I didn't quite get all of that from Nancy Wu's narration. I didn't hate it, I just didn't love it. She didn't bring out all the emotions in her performance, and I really expected and wanted that.

Book vs audio: Read the book. I most definitely recommend reading the book over listening to the audio. 

Purchase Links:

   

About the Author:

Growing up in Tennessee, Miranda Kenneally dreamed of becoming an Atlanta Brave, a country singer (cliché!), or a UN interpreter. Instead she writes, and works for the State Department in Washington, D.C., where George W. Bush once used her shoulder as an armrest. Miranda loves Twitter, Star Trek and her husband.

Author Links:

     

Giveaway:

One winner will receive a digital copy of any Hundred Oaks audiobook of their choice (Catching Jordan, Stealing Parker, Things I Can't Forget, Racing Savannah, or Breathe Annie Breathe) from Audible via the Send This Book feature. Open to anyone who can receive an audiobook this way. Terms and conditions of Send This Book are listed here. Entrants must be 13+ with parents' permission. Giveaway is open until 12 AM CST March 7. Please enter via Rafflecopter below; winner will be chosen at random, and odds are determined by number of entries. I reserve the right to disqualify any entries that are not in accordance with my giveaway policies as stated in the Review & Site Policies tab at the top of the page. Good luck! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Waiting on Wednesday: Breathe, Annie, Breathe by Miranda Kenneally

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases.

 

 *cover not final*

Breathe, Annie, Breathe
Hundred Oaks #5

by Miranda Kenneally

Coming July 1, 2014

Sourcebooks Fire

Summary:

Annie hates running. No matter how far she jogs, she can’t escape the guilt that if she hadn’t broken up with Kyle, he might still be alive. So to honor his memory, she starts preparing for the marathon he intended to race.

But the training is even more grueling than Annie could have imagined. Despite her coaching, she’s at war with her body, her mind—and her heart. With every mile that athletic Jeremiah cheers her on, she grows more conflicted. She wants to run into his arms…and sprint in the opposite direction. For Annie, opening up to love again may be even more of a challenge than crossing the finish line.

Why I want it:

I ALWAYS want the new Miranda Kenneally. Her books take place in middle Tennessee, which is where I went to college. In fact, she even mentions my old stomping grounds in Things I Can't Forget, which makes me go all squishy inside with MTSU Blue Raider pride. So the home connection is pretty strong. I love when books are set in Tennessee. But more than that, I love Miranda's characters, her stories. These are must-buys for me, which is one of the highest praise I can give an author. Also Miranda is totally coming to Texas next week for TLA, which is why I bumped this up on my WoW list. With a little luck, next week I'll be in possession of a shiny signed ARC of Breathe, Annie, Breathe along with the rest of my MK collection! *does a happy dance*

Why I think you should want it:

The reason I love Miranda's characters is that she creates some seriously swoony boys. Even the non-LI's are wonderful, just how supporting characters should be. More than sexy, funny, smart, and sensitive whatever-the-book-equivalent-of-eye-candy-is, Miranda's heroines are brave, strong, and beautifully flawed in really relatable ways. Also, I love how unapologetically talented and passionate they are. I love to read, yes, but I've always been active, especially in my younger years. I understand why so many book heroines are only into books and school and there's nothing wrong with that, but I find Miranda's athletic mc's utterly refreshing. Finally, you should want to read Breathe, Annie, Breathe or any Miranda Kenneally book because they deal with issues without becoming an afternoon special. If there's a tough issue you've dealt with in your life, I guarantee Miranda has talked about it in one of her books and that she did it without it coming across as a judgmental morality play. When I read her books, I feel like someone is saying, "Hey, it's okay. You're not alone."




That's my WoW pick this week. Are you interested in Breathe, Aniie, Breathe? What's your pick? Leave your thoughts and your links in the comments!

Cover Love 7: New Year, New Covers

Well, it's been a while since I recapped covers! Some of these garnered national tv spots, others tried to sneak in under the radar!

Let's just get this out of the way, shall we? I'm not loving this. In fact, I believe I may prefer the placeholder to the actual cover. I liked the way the original three cut the faces because I just do not love Clary's face (to be fair, I didn't love Simon or Jace's either; I also like the models for the first three better, even with their faces cut off). And I get that it's a metaphor, but the fact that Sebastian is all black and shadowy freaks me out. I do plan on buying this immediately and loving it, but this cover is a miss in my book.

City of Heavenly Fire
The Mortal Instruments #6

Cassandra Clare

Margaret K. McElderry (S&S)
May 26, 2014

Summary:

ΕRCHOMAI, SEBASTIAN HAD SAID.
I am coming.

Darkness returns to the Shadowhunter world. As their society falls apart around them, Clary, Jace, Simon and their friends must band together to fight the greatest evil the Nephilim have ever faced: Clary’s own brother. Nothing in the world can defeat him — must they journey to another world to find the chance? Lives will be lost, love sacrificed, and the whole world changed in the sixth and last installment of the Mortal Instruments series!

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This next one is another series book I'm excited about, but again, not wild about the cover. The Hundred Oak books have lovely matching photographic covers. The Sourcebooks team seems to be going in a different direction with this one, and I don't particularly care for that direction. However, again, I know I'll love what's inside. I only wish they'd use prettier wrapping!

Breathe, Annie, Breathe
Hundred Oaks #5

Miranda Kenneally
Sourcebooks Fire

July 1, 2014

Summary:

Eighteen-year-old Annie Winters can barely run a mile without wheezing. Still, she’s training to run the Music City Marathon in seven short months. Running is so not her thing, but she has to finish what her boyfriend started… before he died.

Annie feels guilt that she’s still alive and blames herself for his death. Plus, training gives her something to do, it’s a distraction. So is Jeremiah Brown.

He’s an adrenaline junkie who runs marathons backwards. He flirts with Annie on the trails and it makes her feel alive and happy and guilty all at the same time. She wants to both race into his arms and sprint in the opposite direction – because loving is a risk she’s not sure she’s ready to take again…

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I have another cover to UPDATE (not post for the first time)! I didn't care for the original cover of Synchrony by Cindy Ray Hale. In fact, I didn't care for it so much that I put it on my TTT for covers I'd most want to redesign. It's not a bad photo, per se, but it has the look of being amateur. For the record, that's a real couple in the picture. There's nothing wrong with it; it's just not a book cover. Then Cindy had a professional photoshoot for another version, and I'm happy to say I think this is a winner! It matches the first book, Destiny, so much better, and that's always a plus in my book!

Synchrony
Destiny #2

Cindy Ray Hale

2014

Summary:

When her parents discover she’s been sneaking out with Isaac Robinson, the forbidden Baptist boy, Mormon girl Destiny Clark decides it’s time to keep their relationship quiet. As their relationship moves to shakier ground, Destiny discovers that Isaac has a terrible secret, and she is left completely shattered.

The moment Destiny feels all hope is lost, Preston Nelson, her longtime church friend and Isaac's bitter rival, arrives like a beacon of light. It isn't long before two separate disasters strike for Preston and Destiny's best friend, Hannah. As Destiny helps them through their issues, she discovers that sometimes the best way to forget about your own problems is to help a friend in need.

Just as her heart begins to mend and her friendship with Preston begins to heat up, Isaac walks back into her life, threatening to rekindle the feelings she’d hoped to bury forever. Will Destiny and Preston find the synchrony they so desperately need, or will she find a way to forgive Isaac and return to his outstretched arms?

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This next one, I just find gorgeous. This cover has magic. It reminds me of a movie poster in the best way.

Orenda

Ruth Silver

Patchwork Press
2014

Summary:

Lil has a gift, one she never thought possible as she finds herself awake after a strange dream with the tell-tale sign that what she dreamt was in fact real. The dreamscape, was more than just a premonition it happened. She’d been momentarily tossed into another dimension. Where most would consider her crazy, not her best friend Bray.

In another reality, one similar and yet slightly different Willow has been kidnapped by the sorceress turned demon, Eilith. Rawlie, Willow’s friend and companion crosses to our universe for help and brings Lil into his world. Filled with frightening creatures and magical elements, Lil demands to go home, until she discovers Bray has been taken by Eilith as well. Unable to watch her best friend die, she joins forces with Rawlie, Jamie and the others to hunt down Eilith and rescue those they care about.

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This cover is darling, and I can't wait to read start this series!

Broken Hearts, Fences & Other Things to Mend
Broken Hearts & Revenge #1

Katie Finn
Feiwell & Friends

May 13, 2014

Summary:

Summer, boys, and friendships gone sour. This new series has everything that perfect beach reads are made of!

Gemma just got dumped and is devastated. She finds herself back in the Hamptons for the summer—which puts her at risk of bumping into Hallie, her former best friend that she wronged five years earlier. Do people hold grudges that long?

When a small case of mistaken identity causes everyone, including Hallie and her dreamy brother Josh, to think she’s someone else, Gemma decides to go along with it.

Gemma's plan is working (she's finding it hard to resist Josh), but she's finding herself in embarrassing situations (how could a bathing suit fall apart like that!?). Is it coincidence or is someone trying to expose her true identity? And how will Josh react if he finds out who she is?

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Not a bad cover, but it doesn't grab me. The summary is pretty interesting, though. I think I'll be checking this one out.

The Kiss of Deception
Remnant trilogy #1

Mary E. Pearson
Henry Holt

July 15, 2014

Summary:

In this timeless new trilogy about love and sacrifice, a princess must find her place in a reborn world.

In a society steeped in tradition, Princess Lia’s life follows a preordained course. As First Daughter, she is expected to have the revered gift of sight—but she doesn’t—and she knows her parents are perpetrating a sham when they arrange her marriage to secure an alliance with a neighboring kingdom—to a prince she has never met.

On the morning of her wedding, Lia flees to a distant village. She settles into a new life, hopeful when two mysterious and handsome strangers arrive—and unaware that one is the jilted prince and the other an assasin sent to kill her. Deception abounds, and Lia finds herself on the brink of unlocking perilous secrets—even as she finds herself falling in love.

So, what do you think of this brand-new batch of covers? Are there any you'll read just based on the cover? Let me know!

Blog Tour: Racing Savannah by Miranda Kenneally

Confession time: I read Catching Jordan because it was set in Middle Tennessee, just 30 or so minutes from my college town. I had no idea I would fall in love with Miranda Kenneally and her wonderful characters. Sourcebooks Fire contacted me to be part of their two-month-long blog tour for Racing Savannah, and of course the answer was a resounding YES! So keep reading for my review and an interview with Miranda in which she shares which character forced his/her way into more page time, which author she looks up to, and why friendship is important. There may also be a small peek into the fifth and sixth books in the Hundred Oaks series! Enjoy!

Rating: 4 stars
Pub Date: December 3, 2013
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Genre: young adult contemporary romance
Format/Source: ARC, from the publisher
Status: fourth book in the Hundred Oaks companion series (book 4 of 6)

Summary:

They’re from two different worlds.

He lives in the estate house, and she spends most of her time in the stables helping her father train horses. In fact, Savannah has always been much more comfortable around horses than boys. Especially boys like Jack Goodwin—cocky, popular and completely out of her league. She knows the rules: no mixing between the staff and the Goodwin family. But Jack has no such boundaries.

With her dream of becoming a horse jockey, Savannah isn’t exactly one to follow the rules either. She’s not going to let someone tell her a girl isn’t tough enough to race. Sure, it’s dangerous. Then again, so is dating Jack…

Top Ten Tuesday #22: Can't-Freaking-Wait Sequels

 

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme created by The Broke and The Bookish. Each week the girls at B&B think up a fun theme, and participating bloggers post their favorite 10 books in that category. This week's theme is

Top Ten Sequels I Can't Wait For But I Have to Anyway Because the Publishers Say So

I love reading series. I always have. They keep me in reading. From The Baby-Sitters Club to Nancy Drew to Hardy Boys, Boxcar Children, Harry Potter, The Mediator, Artemis Fowl, Laura Ingalls Wilder, and more, my childhood books often chronicled mulitple adventures of the same characters. It's because I have a tendency to fall hard for my characters and want to read about them until they die, but heaven help the author who did kill a beloved character because that was always devastating. Hence the amount of serials in that list. I do like a good standalone, and in fact, sometimes I prefer them because they're good palate cleansers when I'm stuck in limbo between the next book's release or when I've been shotgunning a series. Naturally, I have far more than 10 books on this list, and there's no way I could ever possibly pick the absolute ten that I need most because I WANT THEM ALL GIVE THEM TO ME BEFORE I HAVE A MELTDOWN. *coughs* Sorry. So instead, I'm doing a bit of a differently styled list today. Some of the books included fit in several categories so I just picked the one I liked best. Enjoy!

The Next Installment

These are the in-between books. Not the beginning, not the end. These are the ballsy books that have to carry the story and that often pray they don't fall prey to the Curse of the Middle Book.

•  Burning Kingdoms (Internment Chronicles 2) - Lauren DeStefano
• Scorched 2 - Mari Mancusi (currently untitled)
• The Girl with the Windup Heart (Steampunk Chronicles 4) - Kady Cross
• Earthquake (Earthbound 2) - Aprilynne Pike
• The Infinite Sea (5th Wave 2) - Rick Yancey
• Firefight (Reckoners/Steelheart 2) - Brandon Sanderson

The Novella

I don't always need a full-blown novel to keep me going. 50-150 bonus pages set in a world I love are a luxury, and I seriously love this trend.

• untitled Internment Chronicles novella - Lauren DeStefano
• "Levana's Tale" (Lunar Chronicles) - Marissa Meyer
• "The Initiate," "The Son," "The Traitor" (Divergent) - Veronica Roth
• "Camp Christmas" (Camp Boyfriend) - J.K. Rock

The Companion

Like with the novella, I'm okay if the author chooses not to do a full sequel with the exact cast as the first one. I'll also take a story with new characters, as long as the old ones pop up every now and then.

•  Perfect Couple & Most Likely To Succeed (Superlatives 2 & 3) - Jennifer Echols
• The Boy Most Likely To (My Life Next Door 2)  - Huntley Fitzpatrick

The Next Book Isn't Even Out Yet, But I Already Want the One After That

Some of these, I've actually already read the next book so my desire for the one after that has been stoked. Others, I don't have to read the one that's about to be pubbed to know that I already want the next-next one.

• Blackcoat Rebellion 2 - Aimée Carter (currently untitled)
• Feels Like Fate (Hundred Oaks 5) & untitled #6 - Miranda Kenneally
• Take Me On (Pushing the Limits 4) - Katie McGarry
• Every book in The Dark Artifices, The Wicked Powers and TLH by Cassandra Clare

The Series Finale

The big kahunas. These are the books we most anticipate--and dread. These are the ones that truly have the power to make-or-break a series. Off the top of your head, you can list final books that did just that. Or you can go back to that TTT post we all did a couple weeks ago.

• The Forever Song (Blood of Eden 3) - Julie Kagawa
• Iron Fey: Call of the Forgotten 3 - Julie Kagawa (currently untitled)
• My Not So Super Sweet Life (My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century 3) - Rachel Harris
• Mediator 7 - Meg Cabot (currently untitled)

My goodness, it seems like we've been waiting forever for City of Heavenly Fire and Mediator 7. OH WAIT THAT'S BECAUSE WE HAVE. But seriously, no rush. I really would rather an author take some extra time (here's lookin' at you Veronica Roth, Laini Taylor, & Michelle Hodkin) to get things right than for a book to come out exactly one year after the one before, but be weak like some of those make-or-break-and-we-broke-it books (once again, I'll state that I have not read Allegiant yet, so if you consider it to be a broken final book, please keep that comment to yourself along with the plethora of reasons why kthx).

I hope you've enjoyed my post of WAY more than ten books today. Did I hit just about all of yours? I wouldn't doubt it. If I did skip yours, let me know what it was and why I'm missing out! Feel free to share your TTT links as well.