Honest and Unflinching // REVIEW: Editing Emma by Chloe Seager

Title: Editing Emma
Author: Chloe Seager
Publication Date: August 10th 2017
Publisher: Harper Collins
Part of a Series?: No, A Standalone
I Got A Copy Through: Harper Collins India (THANK YOU!)
Buy Links: Amazon IN || Amazon UK || The Book Depository || Wordery || Infibeam || Foyles || Waterstones || WHSmith || Kobo || Google Books

Blurb Description: When sixteen-year-old Emma Nash is ‘ghosted’ by the love of her life Leon Naylor, she does what any normal teenage girl would do…Emma spends the summer lurking in her bedroom, avoiding all human contact (and the shower), surrounded by the collection of chewit wrappers she saved from packs Leon gave her, back when he actually acknowledged her existence…
But seeing Leon suddenly ‘In a relationship’ on Facebook with the perfect Anna, spurs Emma into action and she embarks on a mission to make positive changes to her life (or ‘edits,’ if you will) and vows to use the internet for more than obsessively stalking Leon’s activities! Instead, she will use it for good and noble causes like finding someone who will actually be nice to her, and recording her findings for the rest of the world to see (i.e. BFF Steph and her mum) on her new Editing Emma blog.
But Emma soon discovers her ‘habit’ is harder to break than she first thought – turns out she’s not the only one ‘editing’ herself online (thank you Tinder for finding her mum’s profile, age 35, really?) and that life through an Instagram filter isn’t always what it’s cracked up to be. But it could be worse, she could have outed her best friend, accidentally chatted up a 12 year old boy and revealed to the world why Leon Naylor is worth no girl’s time or virginity… oh no wait, that’s exactly what happened…

A book about a girl blogging about her life, discussing issues like periods, masturbation, boys and booze like they shouldn’t even be ‘issues’ to talk about? I’d been hoping for a really long time for Editing Emma to be released in India and when I got the opportunity to read and review it for Harper Collins India, I was BEYOND overjoyed!

I finished Editing Emma in a mere two days (or should I say very busy evenings) and while at times, the book frustrated me, I did really like going on this journey with Emma through her blog posts.

Here are my thoughts:

1.       After reading this book from end to end, I can HONESTLY say teenage girls are confusing and I AM A TEENAGE GIRL, so you could tell how confusing it was for me. I really liked Emma – she was honest and spunky and slightly irritating and I spent 330 pages immersed in her innermost thoughts and I came out of them confused.

2.       In fact, even the boys confused me. (WAIT: IF I DON’T GET TEENAGERS, DOES IT MEAN I’VE GROWN PAST TEENAGER-DOM?) They were cute and charming and nice until they were needy and rude and GHOSTED GIRLS FOR NO REASON?

3.       I actually think all the confusion that I’m talking about above just goes to show HOW ACCUTARELY the life of a high-schooler was portrayed. It felt real and it also annoyed me, and I laughed and felt for the characters. ESSENTIALLY, THIS BOOK CAPTURED EVERYTHING YOU FEEL AS A TEENAGER.

4.       I REALLY like that this was told through blog posts. Essentially it was The Princess Diaries, but in the form of a blog and not a diary.

5.       Emma’s sense of humour and sarcasm levels were OFF THE CHARTS, which was what made this book funny. There are resolutions and lists and awkward first text-versations with boys and also not to mention, a beheaded stuffed giraffe. I loved the hilarity of her life and her spin on it.

6.       This book was about growing up and learning to love yourself in a world where nobody will let you. It was about finding your corner and your people and what’s important and it was done through a teenager which I TRULY applaud.

An honest, unflinching and hilarious (if at times eye-roll worthy) coming of age book that should be added to the top of your ever growing TBRs. 4 stars and definitely worth a read!

Chloe Seager grew up in London with her mum and her much loved cat, Katie. She studied English Literature and Drama at the University of East Anglia where she realised she couldn't act, but did rediscover her love of children's books. 

Children's literature was one of her favourite modules and it made her wonder why grown-ups ever stopped reading them. She now works with YA and kids' books full time. Chloe lives back in East London with her boyfriend and pet fish.

Have you had the chance to read Editing Emma yet? What did you think of it? 

Have you ever had a dairy/ blog/ some form of writing down what went on in your everyday life? How old were you then? 

I hope you guys check out Editing Emma because it's definitely worth the read!

A Whole Different World // REVIEW: Rich People Problems by Kevin Kwan

Title: Rich People Problems (Crazy Rich Asians #3)

Author: Kevin Kwan
Publication Date: May 23rd 2017
Publisher: Doubleday Books for Young Readers
Part of a Series?: Yes, Book 3 of the Crazy Rich Asians Series
I Got A Copy Through: Penguin Random House International
Buy Links: Amazon IN || Amazon US || Amazon UK || Barnes and Noble || The Book Depository || Wordery || Snapdeal || Infibeam || Foyles || Waterstones || WHSmith || Kobo || Books A Million || Chapters Indigo || Google Books

Blurb Description: Kevin Kwan, bestselling author of Crazy Rich Asians and China Rich Girlfriend, is back with an uproarious new novel of a family riven by fortune, an ex-wife driven psychotic with jealousy, a battle royal fought through couture gown sabotage, and the heir to one of Asia's greatest fortunes locked out of his inheritance. 
When Nicholas Young hears that his grandmother, Su Yi, is on her deathbed, he rushes to be by her bedside--but he's not alone. It seems the entire Shang-Young clan has convened from all corners of the globe, ostensibly to care for their matriarch but truly to stake claim on the massive fortune that Su Yi controls. With each family member secretly fantasizing about getting the keys to Tyersall Park--a trophy estate on 64 prime acres in the heart of Singapore--the place becomes a hotbed of intrigue and Nicholas finds himself blocked from entering the premises. As relatives claw over heirlooms, Astrid Leong is at the center of her own storm, desperately in love with her old sweetheart Charlie Wu, but tormented by his ex-wife--a woman hell bent on destroying Astrid's reputation and relationship. Meanwhile Kitty Pong, married to billionaire Jack Bing, finds a formidable opponent in his fashionista daughter, Colette. A sweeping novel that takes us from the elegantly appointed mansions of Manila to the secluded private islands in the Sulu Sea, from a schoolyard kidnapping to a gold-leaf dancefloor spattered with blood, Kevin Kwan's gloriously wicked new novel reveals the long-buried secrets and rich people problems of Asia's most privileged families. 

I bought into all the hype this book was getting over Twitter where EVERYBODY was talking about it. When I requested it from Penguin Random House International, I had no idea it was the third book in the series, which led to my three day binge of this INSANE series and a still ongoing slight book hangover.

Before I begin,

1.       I visited Singapore, Macau and Hong Kong about a month before diving into this BRILLIANT series, which made the places a lot more real to me, and I loved that experience.

2.       I’m Asian (Indian to be more specific) and I love how Indian culture is also thrown into this book, ESPECIALLY in Rich People Problems.

So, let my Rich People Problems rant/ review begin:

Graphic from National Book Store

IDEA:

I should probably talk about the idea for the series as a whole, which quite simply is PURE genius! Being Asian, I’ve seen my fair share of those ULTRA RICH people (maybe not as rich as the people in this series) but I’ve seen them around/ know them. This book embodies extravagance, love, gossip, beauty, couture, status and most importantly, money.

It’s so different from the normal world we live in and the ENTIRE Crazy Rich Asians series has this power to make you forget your normal life and live in theirs.

WRITING:

There are so many characters in this book, and the writing is just gorgeous. Sometimes a chapter is told from one person’s point of view, and sometimes you’re given a location and the viewpoints keep switching between the people present there. It was truly a different experience to read from SO MANY people’s points of view to understand everybody’s motivations better.

I also SPECIFICALLY loved that we heard from Nick’s grandmother, Sun Yi in Rich People Problems, because even though everyone was talking about her, she was the one character I felt like I didn’t know.

PLOT:

The plot of Rich People Problems was by far the MOST interesting one of the series. The whole series has revolved around one underlying questions of WHO would inherit the gigantic fortune of the Young/ Shang clan and well, THIS WAS THE BOOK WHERE WE FOUND OUT! I spent most of the time wanting to JUST FLIP and reach the part where everything was announced, and it took such an effort for me to not!

Other Books in this Series

CHARACTERS:

I feel like I KNOW these characters. In the span of three books and three days I got to know Nick, Rachel, Astrid, Charlie, Eleanor, Eddie, Oliver, Kitty, Colin and every other secondary character we saw this glamourous world from.

While Nick and Rachel were this solid, dependable couple, Astrid and Charlie have been my OTP for the entire series. I loved the two of them together, and specifically flipped pages to see when I’d hear from them next.

There’s honestly too much I want to talk about and very little I can talk about without spoiling it. If there is a sequel, I will jump across continents for it!

A different kind of world, a diverse cast of characters thrown in a whirlwind of money, family, fame, status, love and all things Asian!  

.Kevin Kwan is the author of "Crazy Rich Asians," the international bestseller now being adapted as a major motion picture. The sequel, "China Rich Girlfriend," will be released on June 16, 2015. Born and raised in Singapore, Kwan has called Manhattan home for the past two decades but still craves pineapple tarts and a decent plate of Hokkien mee. 

Please visit Kevin at: Website || Facebook || Instagram || Twitter || Pinterest

Have you had the chance to read this series yet? What did you think of it? 

Have you visited Singapore/ Hong Kong/ Macau/ Bangkok? What did you think of it? 

I do hope you guys dive into this series because it is SO WORTH IT!

BLOG TOUR: Gilt Hollow by Lorie Langdon - Interview + Giveaway

Title: Gilt Hollow

Author: Lorie Langdon

Publication Date: September 27th 2016

Publisher: Blink (Bonnier) Publishing Group

Part of a Series?: No, A Standalone

I Got A Copy Through: NetGalley for the Blog Tour!

Buy Links: AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | BOOK DEPOSITORY

Blurb Description: Willow Lamott’s best friend is a murderer, and no one in the small town of Gilt Hollow will let her forget it. For four long years, she’s tried to fade into the background—but none of that matters when Ashton Keller comes striding into school, fresh out of juvie and fueled by revenge. The moment their eyes meet, Willow no longer feels invisible. Drawn to the vulnerability behind Ashton’s mask of rage, she sinks deeper into his sinister world and begins to question whether he’s a villain, a savior, or both.
Ashton thought he wanted vengeance, until Willow reminded him what he’d been missing. Now he longs to clear his name and become the person she sees in him. But the closer they get to uncovering the truth, the darker the secrets become, and Ashton fears his return to Gilt Hollow will destroy everyone he loves, especially the girl he left behind.

1. The Funniest Thing That Has Ever Happened to You

I’m not sure if this is funny or just sad. When I was younger, I was a huge fangirl of New Kids On The Block. My friend Jen and I went to a concert and hung out near the stage afterwards because we’d heard the band would sometimes come out to meet the fans. After about fifteen minutes, I was approached by a boy wearing a backwards baseball cap and flanked by two big guys who looked like body guards. I thought he looked familiar, and when he asked me if I wanted to hang out with him, I asked, “Should I know who you are?” He exchanged looks with his friends and said, “Not yet. But I promise you, you will.”

He was shorter than me and super cocky, so I declined. He tried a few more times and I gave him a very firm, “No.”

Less than a month later my friend and I were watching MTV (back when they played music videos) and we saw the boy from the NKOTB concert…it was Marky-Mark Walberg in the Good Vibrations video, now just known as the famous and super-hot actor, Mark Walberg.

And I’d turned him down.

:

2. Three Places You would Love to visit –

First and always…Scotland! Many of you may know that I’m one of the authors of the DOON series which is set in Alloway, Scotland as well as a Scottish fantasy kingdom. My co-author and I have dreams of visiting the real Brig o’ Doon!

Second; London, England. I have another novel that is yet to be published called Olivia Twist which is set in Victorian England. When you write a novel and research the setting, you live in that place in your head. I’d love to visit all the historical sites I wrote about!

Third, simply because I’m a beach bum at heart, Bora Bora!

  

3. Tell Us About the Day you found out you were getting Published 
Well, it was kind of weird. My first book deal was for the Doon series. We had been praying and hoping for months. Obsessively checking our phones and email. One day, my agent set up a conference call with me and Carey (my co-author). But when our agent told us the news, neither one of us could speak. If you know us, you know how rare silence is when we’re together.

Our agent finally said, “Well, aren’t you guys excited? This is a four book deal! Unheard of in the publishing industry for debut authors!” 

Then we both started crying. I think it was shock. We’d only written the first Doon book at that point and had sold the other three on proposal!

And now, Moving onto your masterpiece:

1. Tell your readers a little about Gilt Hollow: 
Willow has spent the past four years trying to forget the day her best friend was convicted of manslaughter. But When Ashton is released from juvie, Willow is forced to confront the past, as well as her growing romantic feelings for her once best friend. Ashton seeks out Willow’s help to clear his name, but the closer they get to the truth the more Willow begins to doubt Ashton’s innocence.

The book is set in the Fall in the small, eclectic town of Gilt Hollow. Autumn is my favorite time of year, so I especially enjoyed writing that part of the story. There’s a creepy mansion, lots of atmospheric Autumn scenes, and a Sleepy Hollow, Halloween Ball! 

2. How is Writing Gilt Hollow different from writing the Doon Series, which is a collaboration? Collaborating on the Doon series was fun. I’ve said many times that those books were far better because Carey and I wrote them together. But there’s something special about writing a story that’s just yours. I have to admit that writing alone is a bit easier. You never have to compromise on your ideas and you can write at your own pace.  I feel blessed that I’ve had the chance to publish with one of my best friends and on my own.

3. Do A Gilt Hollow Expansion (One Adjective for each letter of the title, describing the book!) Okay, but I already know those “O’s” are going to be a killer!

G – Gritty

I – Intense

L – Love-story 

T – Thriller

H – Heartening

O – Obsessional (It’s a word, I promise!)

L – Lethal

L – Liberating  

O – Ominous

W – Whodunit 

Lorie Langdon has longed to write her own novels since she was a wee girl reading every Judy Blume book she could get her hands on. So a few years ago, she left her thriving corporate career to satisfy the voices in her head. Now as a full-time author, she spends her days tucked into her cozy office, Havanese puppy by her side, working to translate her effusive imagination into the written word.

Lorie has been interviewed on Entertainment Weekly.com and several NPR radio programs, including Lisa Loeb’s national Kid Lit show. The DOON series has been featured on such high profile sites as USAToday.com, Hypable.com and BroadwayWorld.com.

Lorie’s first solo novel, GILT HOLLOW, a YA romantic thriller, releases September 27th 2016!

WEBSITE || TWITTER || GOODREADS || FACEBOOK

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Blog Tour: Suffer Love by Ashley Herring Blake - Review + Favourite Quotes + Giveaway

Title:Suffer Love
Author: Ashley Herring Blake
Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers
Release Date: May 3rd 2016

Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance, Realistic Fiction

Blurb Description: Hadley St. Clair's life changed the day she came home to a front door covered in slips of paper, each of them revealing the ugly truth about her father. Now as her family falls apart in the wake of his year-long affair, Hadley wants everyone-her dad most of all-to leave her alone.
Then she meets Sam Bennett, a cute new boy who inexplicably "feels like home" to Hadley. Hadley and Sam's connection is undeniable, but Sam has a secret about his family that could ruin everything.
Funny and passionate, Suffer Love is a story about first love, family dysfunction, and the fickle hand of fate.

Quite honestly, there’s not many contemporaries out there that surprise me anymore. There’s too much pining or insta-love or not enough pining. They need to have just the right balance, and I will fall in love with them.

From the description, Suffer Love didn’t seem like it was going to be one of those perfect novels, but a pretty good one, and so I decided to sign up for the tour anyway!

BUT SUFFER LOVE WAS THE MOST PERFECT, MOST PERFECT STORY EVER.

There was pining, and it wasn’t too much. There was attraction and chemistry and SWOONS but it wasn’t instant and not too slow burn either. It wasn’t all about Hadley and Sam them, there were so many amazing secondary characters like Livy and Ajay and Cat and even their parents. It was SUCH SUCH SUCH A well done story, I don’t even know what to say about it.

The thing I loved THE MOST about Suffer Love was that it was so REAL. Everything felt topsy-turvy, and painful and happy and screwed up and pretty much every moment in your life, captured in the form of a book (which is the BEST shape ever) and I salute you, Ashley Herring Blake for making this come to life.

5 STARS.

And the recommendation that YOU NEED THIS BOOK IN YOUR LIFE. 

QUOTES:

"Since everything in my life went to crap, I haven't exactly been on the prowl for a heart-fluttering romance."

"Hot? How is not the word I would've used. Unsurpassed. Magical. Wistful. But you can't say that kind of shit without being called a pussy, so I keep my mouth shut.

"I want her to come with me and I want her eyes on mine and her words to fill up the space in my car. There are a million voices in my head right now, screaming about what a delusional idiot I am, but with her standing in front of me, her lashes fanning her pink cheeks, they're easy to ignore."

Follow the Suffer Love by Ashley Herring Blake Blog Tour and don't miss anything! Click on the banner to see the tour schedule.

Ashley Herring Blake is a poet, teacher, and YA novelist. Her debut novel, SUFFER LOVE, follows two teens as they attempt to wade through an intense relationship complicated by their parents' infidelities. Ashley lives in Nashville, TN.

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Review: Only Ever Yours by Louise O'Neill

Title: Only Ever Yours

Author: Louise O'Neill

Publisher: Quercus

Publication Date: July 2nd 2015

Part of A Series?: Standalone

I Got A Copy Through: I bought it here: Amazon

Blurb Description: In a world in which baby girls are no longer born naturally, women are bred in schools, trained in the arts of pleasing men until they are ready for the outside world. At graduation, the most highly rated girls become “companions”, permitted to live with their husbands and breed sons until they are no longer useful.
For the girls left behind, the future – as a concubine or a teacher – is grim.
Best friends Freida and Isabel are sure they’ll be chosen as companions – they are among the most highly rated girls in their year.
But as the intensity of final year takes hold, Isabel does the unthinkable and starts to put on weight. ..And then, into this sealed female environment, the boys arrive, eager to choose a bride.
Freida must fight for her future – even if it means betraying the only friend, the only love, she has ever known. . . 

‘I am a good girl. I am pretty. I am always happy go lucky.’

It has taken me a really long while to write this review. I’ve attempted it from time to time, but each time, I felt like what I was saying wasn’t enough; I felt like wasn’t saying enough on how necessary it is to read this book and I felt like I wasn’t spreading the message that this book drilled into me well enough.

‘I am pretty. I am a good girl. I always do what I am told.’

Look around you. No, really look. And try to remember the last time when someone told you that, being a girl or even being a part of society, meant you had to do something; you had to be some other version of yourself, that you didn't entirely want to be. Try and remember if you accepted it or not. If you were willing to do something someone else told you, just because they said it was better.

Try an remember when the last time you judged someone by their looks, and remember the last time you were judged based on your skin colour, your weight, you clothing.

Try and remember the last time that boys were let away with ‘Oh, they’re boys’ and girls, such as yourself, shunned for doing the exact same thing that the boys did.

Try and remember the last time you were told that you were ‘supposed’ to do things a certain way.

We live in a world of double standards and unrealistic ideals, and we don’t even realise it, but Louise O’Neill’s books will leave you with a new sense of dread and understanding.

Imagine our world as a school, where women (eves) are genetically modified to look their "best" from a catalogue. Imagine growing up in a place where there is a fat girl buffet, and a thin girl buffet, and if you go to the former, you’re ridiculed. Imagine you’ve grown up your whole life, being ranked on a chart based on what you look like. 

Imagine a world where the girls need to do everything and be everything that man wants her to me, because they’re the better sex.

This, of course, is a dystopian novel but look around you and you will see that EVERY scary thing I just spoke about, WE ACTUALLY DO IT. Intentionally, and unintentionally. It happens here, in this supposedly modern 20^th century. And it should shock you, it should disgust you, because it is shocking and disgusting.

Freida is an eve. Designed, prepared, good, obedient, pretty. And her goal is to become a companion and give her husband a hundred sons, so that he may grant her a sliver of freedom, like having her own TV show. Freida is going to make it.

And so are the hundreds of other eves in the program. After all,

‘Only the best will be chosen. And only the men will decide.’

The most real, unsettling novel you will ever read, and I couldn’t recommend it more.

Have you read Louise O'Neill books? If you haven't, YOU SHOULD! (She is on my auto buy list!)

Tell me which book to read next, because I NEED something that good!