Truth or Dare by Non Pratt

Truth or Dare by Non Pratt
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A powerful and moving novel about bravery from the Guardian's "writer to watch" Non Pratt, perfect for fans of Rainbow Rowell, John Green and Holly Bourne. How far is too far when it comes to the people you love? Claire Casey hates being the centre of attention. But if it means getting Sef Malik to notice her, it’s a risk she’s happy to take. Sef is prepared to do anything to help his recently disabled brother. But this means putting Claire’s love – and life – on the line. Because when you're willing to risk everything, what is there left to lose?


I have read a few of Non Pratt's novels before and enjoyed them, when I found out she was releasing a new one which flips I couldn't wait to get started.

In part 1 we meet Claire, she hears about a dreadful accident over the summer, where Kamran fell into a river and have been in a coma, he has woken up, however is suspected to be brain damaged and will need thousands of pounds for treatment and care. Sef is Kam's brother and although he is grateful for the help the school is offering, he knows he needs to make money and quick, when he asks Claire to help him form a YouTube channel, she agrees. Together they form Truth Girl and Dare Boy, they create videos on different truths and dares, encouraging people to donate when they watch.

Through Claire's part we learn of the truths and dares the duos do, attempting to fundraise as much as they can. Sef realises it's not enough and that they need to do the biggest dare yet to secure funding for Kam.

On flipping the book over, we read the story through Sef's eyes and begin to understand him better. Personally I didn't particularly like Sef, the way he behaves towards others is not brilliant, but then you are constantly reminded that he is doing all of this for his brother Kam still in hospital.

This was an interesting story, which is up to date in terms of technology and social media. I think if you love Non Pratt's previous books you will love this too. If you are also looking for something a little different, this could also be for you.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

Real Live Boyfriends by E. Lockhart

Real Live Boyfriends by E. Lockhart
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Yes. Boyfriends, Plural. If My Life Weren't Complicated, I Wouldn't Be Ruby Oliver

From E. Lockhart, author of the best-seller We Were Liars, and the highly-acclaimed The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, comes this hilarious and heart-warming series.

Ruby Oliver is in love. Or it would be love, if Noel, her real live boyfriend, would call her back. Not only is her romantic life a shambles:
* her dad is eating nothing but Cheetos
* her mother's got a piglet head in the refrigerator
* Hutch has gone to Paris to play baguette air guitar
* Gideon shows up shirtless
* and the pygmy goat Robespierre is no help whatsoever

Will Ruby ever control her panic attacks? Will she ever understand boys? Will she ever stop making lists? (No to that last one.) Ruby has lost most of her friends. She's lost her true love, more than once. She's lost her job, her reputation, and possibly her mind. But she's never lost her sense of humour.

The Ruby Oliver books are the record of her survival.


This is the final book in the Ruby series and wow what an ending, over the course of the 3 books we have followed Ruby through her teen years and learning about herself and others, there have been laughter and tears at times but she has always come through in the end. Reading these books we as readers have been on a journey with Ruby and we have grown up with her.

Everyone will have been able to relate to Ruby, she is your typical teenage girl who has similarities with all of us. Ruby has to deal with real life situations and some of which we may think now looking back are silly and not worth worrying about, to your teenage self you will remember how it felt like the end of the world. This makes her really easy to relate to.

These books are so easy to read, you must make sure you read the others in the series in order to really get the full enjoyment of this book, remember it is part of a series and shouldn't be read as a stand alone.

I don't really want to say much about this due to it being the last in the series as I don't want to spoil it. All I would say is that I think this is the perfect ending for the series and I am a little sad to see the Ruby Oliver series over. This would be a great series for any teenage girl to read, I am sure they will enjoy it as much as I have.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

Fly on the Wall by E. Lockhart

Fly on the Wall by E. Lockhart
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

At the Manhattan School of Art and Music, where everyone is unique, Gretchen Yee feels ordinary. It doesn't help that she's known as the shy girl who sits alone at lunch, drawing pictures of her favourite superhero, just so she won't have to talk to anyone.

It's no surprise that Gretchen isn't exactly successful in the boy department. Her ex-boyfriend is a cold-fish-sometimes-flirty ex who she can't stop bumping into. Plus, she has a massive crush on a boy named, Titus but is too scared to make the first move. One minute he seems like a sensitive guy, the next, he's a completely different person when he's with his friends. She can't seem to figure boys out!

Gretchen has one wish: to be a fly on the wall in the boy's locker room. What are boys really like? What do they talk about?

This is the story of how one girl's wish came true.


When I heard e.lockhart had another one of her books rebranded by Hot Key books and it was one I hadn't read I couldn't wait to get my teeth stuck into it. My favourite has been We Were Liars of hers and to be honest I haven't read another that has come close yet. Unfortunately this doesn't make it into the same league of that book either.

I thought this sounded really interesting 'fly on the wall' scenario, when has anyone not wished they could be a fly on the wall at some time in their lives. This was just that though, the story was split into three sections. To be honest I found it difficult to link these all together and how they fit together. The first section we learn about Gretchen, who is a normal girl who goes to an artsy school, she knows little about boys and is always falling out with her friends. Gretchen makes a wish to be a fly on the wall and for some reason this actually comes true. This is the major issue for me, it is completely unbelievable, which would be fine if this was explained as to how this happened and for me this was a big fail.

The whole middle section is about Gretchen being this fly on the wall, the things she sees and hears on the wall of the boys locker room. Some of this is amusing, however some of the language used to describe parts of the anatomy I found was very immature.

The third section links a little more with the first but we still didn't know exactly how this all happened. This was a very short read at just over 170 page. I read this in a couple of hours and it did pass the time. I would not recommend this to older teenagers as I think they may find it a little irritating.

This book was O.K and only O.K I wouldn't be reading this again, which is a shame as I loved e. Lockharts We Were Liars, I am still trying to find another of hers, which holds up to this.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review. 

The Treasure Map of Boys by E. Lockhart

The Treasure Map of Boys by E. Lockhart
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Noel, Jackson, Finn, Hutch, Gideon-and me, Ruby Oliver From E. Lockhart, author of the best-seller We Were Liars, and the highly-acclaimed The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, comes this hilarious and heart-warming series. Things are looking good for Ruby Oliver. It's the thirty-seventh week that she's been in the state of Noboyfriend. Ruby's panic attacks are bad, and her love life is even worse, not to mention the fact that more than one boy seems to be giving Ruby a lot of their attention. Rumours are flying, and Ruby's already not-so-great reputation is heading downhill. Not only that, she's also: * running a bake sale * learning the secrets of heavy-metal therapy * encountering some seriously smelly feet * defending the rights of pygmy goats * and bodyguarding Noel from unwanted advances. In this third instalment to the Ruby Oliver series, Ruby tries to pin down two important things: real friendship, and true love - if such a thing exists.

I have read the others in this series and I am glad I have as I think I got more out of the novel, however I think you could have read this as a stand alone as we do get a brief catch up at the beginning of the book.

Ruby does seem to begin to get a bit more of a brain in this book, perhaps she is beginning to grow up, slightly? This is the book she finally realises how awful Jackson is and manages to stick to her guns.

I feel a lot happens to Roo in this book, she looses her job, falls out with friends (again), gets a new dog called Polka - Dot and is still obsessed with boys. Although a lot of these are teen related issues that personally I felt I couldn't relate to, she does seem as if she is beginning to grown up, especially towards the end of the book.

This is not my favourite series and I would not say I love it, but I will be reading the final installment, hoping that finally Ruby sees things for what they are and grows up.

I would recommend this series to younger teens.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

Ruby Oliver 2: The Boy Book by E. Lockhart

Ruby Oliver 2: The Boy Book by E. Lockhart
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A Study of Boy Habits and Behaviours from me, Ruby Oliver

From E. Lockhart, author of the best-seller We Were Liars, and the highly-acclaimed The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, comes this hilarious and heart-warming series.

Here is how things stand at the beginning of newly-licensed driver Ruby Oliver's junior year at Tate Prep:

Kim: Not speaking. But far away in Tokyo.
Cricket: Not speaking.
Nora: Speaking--sort of. Chatted a couple times this summer when they bumped into each other outside of school--once shopping in the U District, and once in the Elliot Bay Bookstore. But she hadn't called Ruby, or anything.
Noel: Didn't care what anyone thinks.
Meghan: Didn't have any other friends.
Dr. Z: Speaking.
And Jackson. The big one. Not speaking.

But with a new job, an unlikely but satisfying friend combo, additional entries to "The Boy Book" and many difficult decisions help Ruby to see that there is, indeed, life outside the Tate Universe.


I took this book away with me on holiday for some light reading. I enjoyed the first book in the series and I was looking forward to jumping into Ruby's world again.

This book is very quick and easy to read, the characters from the first book feature in this and it is a continuation from the previous. I would say you should read the first in order to have a good understanding of what is going on in this book.

This book features more on Ruby's friendships rather than the boys, they do still play an important part in the novel, however we see Ruby trying to deal with the fall out of her friends, how she feels isolated at times and trying to make amends. This covers all aspects of high school life and how raw feelings are. Things feel like the end of the world when you are Ruby's age and Lockhart has portrayed this well. You feel the rawness of the fallouts and really can connect to Ruby's feelings. You go through the journey with Ruby to try and not be a leaper anymore and patch up friendships. This is a true journey of growing up and having to deal with things life throw at you as a teenager.

I really enjoyed this instalment, I think better than the first book, the characters already being developed allowed the reader to just enjoy the story. It is short and I ended up reading it in one sitting on the plane during a 2 and a half hour journey. I would recommend you to start this if you are looking for an easy to read series.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

London Belongs to Us by Sarra Manning

London Belongs to Us by Sarra Manning
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Seventeen-year-old Sunny's always been a little bit of a pushover. But when she's sent a picture of her boyfriend kissing another girl, she knows she's got to act. What follows is a mad, twelve-hour dash around London - starting at 8pm in Crystal Palace (so far away from civilisation you can't even get the Tube there) then sweeping through Camden, Shoreditch, Soho, Kensington, Notting Hill . . . and ending up at 8am in Alexandra Palace.

Along the way Sunny meets a whole host of characters she never dreamed she'd have anything in common with - least of all the devilishly handsome (and somewhat vain) French 'twins' (they're really cousins) Jean Luc and Vic. But as this love-letter to London shows, a city is only a sum of its parts, and really it's the people living there who make up its life and soul. And, as Sunny discovers, everyone - from friends, apparent-enemies, famous bands and even rickshaw drivers - is willing to help a girl on a mission to get her romantic retribution.


I read this in a couple of sittings at the beginning of the holiday's. I really wanted something light and fun to get my out of my reading slump and this did just that.

The book is extremely easy to read, as I read the book I felt I had gone on a journey with Sunny and really wanted Mark to stop being such an idiot! I couldn't believe the way this character behaved though the book and although he isn't a 'main' character as he doesn't say an awful lot directly he plays a massive part in this story - it is the whole reason Sunny is trekking across London!

The story takes place over one night, a night where Sunny is on a wild goose chase to find her boyfriend Mark. When she arrives in a new area of London, we get some information about that part. I really loved reading about the areas through history and actually learnt a lot, whether this was about famous residents or shops that originated from there. I thought this was a unique feature to the book.

This book is fast paced and funny, it is a young contemporary book with Sunny being 17 and set in the summer holidays. This is a real light read and perfect for the summer months. The only reason I have given this book 4* and not 5* is because at times I did skim read a little, this was only because the structure of the story was a little repetitive, (Sunny trying to find Mark - paths may cross, she chases him a bit more and again misses him.) At one point I thought perhaps Sunny had done a little too much chasing him. That doesn't mean I didn't enjoy her adventure or the people she met a long the way, because I did immensely.

If you like YA, especially UKYA then grab yourself a copy of this, even if you just like London, grab a copy as you will love this. I think this is a really great YA read and a perfect one for the summer months. I recommend this book!

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

Ruby Oliver 1: The Boyfriend List by E. Lockhart

Ruby Oliver 1: The Boyfriend List by E. Lockhart
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

From E. Lockhart, author of the New York Times bestseller and Zoella Book Club 2016 title, We Were Liars, comes this hilarious and heart-warming series. 15 Guys, 11 Shrink Appointments, 4 Ceramic Frogs and Me, Ruby Oliver Ruby Oliver is fifteen and has a shrink. But before you make up your mind about her, you should know that she has had a pretty awful (and eventful) past ten days. She has: lost her boyfriend (#13 on the boyfriend list), lost her best friend, lost all her other friends, did something suspicious with a boy (#10), did something advanced with a boy (#15), had an argument with a boy (#14), drank her first beer (someone handed it to her), got caught by her mom (ag!), had a panic attack (scary), lost a lacrosse game, failed a math test, hurt Meghan's feelings, became a social outcast, and had graffiti written about her in the girls' bathroom. But don't worry, Ruby lives to tell the tale. Through a special assignment to list all the boys she's ever had the slightest, little, any-kind-of-anything with, comes an unfortunate series of events that would be enough to send any girl in a panic.



I have a couple of E.Lockhart's books and enjoyed them all. When I was offered the chance to read and review this book, I started straight away. I managed to read this in a couple of sittings, it is just over 200 pages and a relatively light read.

This is a story about Ruby Oliver, who seems to alienate herself from all her peers due to choices she makes. Ruby has had a series of panic attacks and it is not until her parents experience one that she is sent to see a Dr. The story is told through her eyes at her therapy sessions with Dr Z, as you read you begin to discover the reasons for her panic attacks. Ruby is a fifteen year old, who goes through the regular of issues most fifteen year olds deal with. Unfortunately for me, she was not a likable character.

The story as I have mentioned is through Ruby's eyes in the form of a list, that her Dr has asked her to complete, to try and get to know Ruby better and for her to begin to identify with herself. I found it difficult initially to follow due to the footnotes, some of these are quite long on the pages.

Ruby came across a little shallow during the story and not really worried about who she hurt along the way. I felt sorry for Angelo and would loved to have seen more of him. I also wished he had perhaps confronted her about her behaviour on that night.

There was no resolution to the story and we were left hanging some what, I would have liked to have found out what happened with Kim. Saying this, this is part of a series and so I am hoping to find out more when I continue reading. Although I have only given this book 3 1/2 stars it does not mean it was awful, it kept me entertained, it was a light read but just left me feeling a little deflated, it didn't really set me on fire. Saying this it has kept me interested enough to want to read the next in the series.

I would recommend this is for you want a quick light read. I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

The ACB with Honora Lee by Kate De Goldi

The ACB with Honora Lee by Kate De Goldi
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Perry's mother and father are busy people ... they're impatient, they're tired, they get cross easily. And they think that only children, like Perry, should be kept busy. On Saturday mornings Perry and her father visit her gran, Honora Lee, at the Santa Lucia rest home, but Gran never remembers them. 'Who is that man?' Honora Lee asks when Perry's father leaves the room. After movement class is abruptly cancelled, Perry is allowed to go to Santa Lucia on Thursday afternoons. She discovers her Gran has an unconventional interest in the alphabet, so Perry decides to make an alphabet book with the help of Honora and the others. Soon everyone is interested in Perry's book project. The ACB With Honora Lee unfolds with characteristic warmth, quirky, surprising humor and a rich cast of 'residents'. The story is a meditation on kindness and patience and acceptance; that of the very young and the very old. It's a story that will resonate with echoes of recollection for many -- from Perry's endearing perspective on the adult world to the embracing kindness of those who care for the elderly.



This was a really quick read, I read it in two sittings.

This is written from Perry's point of view, an eight year old. It was very easy to pick up on this from the style it was written. She makes weekly visits to her grandmother at a home in Santa Lucia. She is loosing her memory and is not sure who Perry is, as the book goes on she is still not clear on who she is, but seems to enjoy her presence.

During her visits to her grandmothers she decides to create an ABC book of all her grandmothers memories. While she does this many of the other people at the retirement home also get great joy of Perry's visits and manages to entertain them all.

Perry wants to begin at the beginning of her book and work though systematically, but the joys of the grandmother make this impossible and she jumps from letter to letter. The relationship that Perry has with her grandmother is wonderful.

The illustrations through the book are unique and quirky. I can imagine younger readers would be inspired to create their own ABC book, I know this would have been something I would have loved to make with my grandma as a child.

Other than the stoyy of creating the ABC book, the story I felt come to an end rather suddenly and I would have liked this to have been a little better developed. Saying that I would happily recommend this to others to read.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

Trouble Is a Friend of Mine by Stephanie Tromly

Trouble Is a Friend of Mine by Stephanie Tromly
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Sherlock meets The Breakfast Club in this story of a wisecracking girl who meets a weird but brilliant boy and their roller-coaster of a semester that's one part awkward, three parts thrilling, and five parts awesome

After her parents get divorced, high school junior Zoe Webster moves with her mother from Brooklyn to upstate New York, determined to get back to the city and transfer to the elite private school her father insists on. But then she meets Philip Digby--the odd and brilliant and somehow attractive?--Digby, and soon finds herself in a series of hilarious and dangerous situations all centered on his search for the kidnapper of a local teenage girl who may know something about the tragic disappearance of his kid sister eight years ago. Before she knows it, Zoe has vandalized an office complex with fake snow, pretended to buy drugs alongside a handsome football star dressed like the Hulk, had a serious throw down with a possible religious cult, challenged her controlling father, and, oh yeah, saved her new hometown.

For fans of John Green and David Levithan, this is a crime novel where catching the crook isn't the only hook, a romance where the leading man is decidedly unromantic, a friendship story where they aren't even sure they like each other, and a debut you won't soon forget.



I think that there will be those that love this book and it will be a success but I'm afraid it really didn't do it for me.

Zoe is meant to be the main character but I felt that she was overshadowed by Digby who this book really seems to be about. Zoe's parents having divorced force her mother to move and her to relocate to a new school Her father is somewhat overbearing and a control freak, he takes control of her choices and is forcing her to go to a new prep school that she doesn't entirely want but she agrees with whatever he suggests. Digby arrives at her house one day with no explanation of who he is and starts asking her some strange questions and believe it or not this eccentric stalker type 16 year old boy and Zoe become friends. Digby is strange to say the least and he hatches a plan with Zoe's help to find a teenager who recently went missing from the same school.

To be honest I found it all a bit too far fetched and unbelievable; here we have a girl who is new to the area and school who forges a relationship with a boy who exhibits manic tendencies, he texts her with random and weird demands ,G4 1550 Bring food' and appears to be just a little unhinged most of the time.

Tromly has obviously watched the Cumberbatch interpretation of Sherlock Holmes and has based the rather empty character of Digby on him. Unfortunately although this works for Sherlock Holmes it does not have the same effect through a 16 year old boy. He simply does not have the maturity to pull this off and for me that left the whole essence of the book just pointless and flat. There were some good attempts at comedy and some of the dialogue was very funny but there was just not enough substance to hold it all together.

The characters were not believable - Zoe was pathetic and needy, Digby was completely unauthentic and the supporting characters were not developed enough for the reader to connect with them. It started off interestingly enough with Zoe standing outside a house full of explosives and wondering how to get back in and I really thought that this was going to be an explosive read. Sadly that was not the case more like a damp squib - it was very slow to begin with and then did pick up a bit but with no real reason (none given by the author) of why a 16 year old seemingly disturbed boy would want to solve a missing person case with no connection to that person (or none that we are told of) the plot and story lacked authenticity.

The other thing that mystified me was how it was possible that Digby had managed to get the support of others, who held him up to be a bit of a character and not the weird person he comes over in the book. He was really quite creepy just 'appearing' in Zoe's room and then getting people to follow her because he said she couldn't look after herself! Really a bit stalkerish (if there is such a word) in my opinion. As this is aimed at YA's I am a bit concerned that this behaviour could be seen as 'normal' - I mean is it acceptable that a young boy can wander around the streets at all times of the day and night spying and breaking into buildings just because he believes he can solve a crime?

In summary the funny parts were entertaining but the rest was really quite boring and lacked depth; I almost gave up and didn't finish the book but did soldier on to the end which in itself was rather lack luster although it has been left for a sequel should Stephanie Tromly think it deserves another book, but if she does I'm afraid I wouldn't want to read it - sorry.

Can't really give this more than 3 stars.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

How to Be Bad - E.Lockhart

How to Be Bad by E. Lockhart
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

When you've had enough of being good, sometimes you've got to try a little bad... Jesse, Vicks and Mel couldn't be more different. Jesse, a righteous Southern gal who's as thoughtful as she is uptight, is keeping a secret that she knows will change her life forever. Vicks is a wild-child: seemingly cool, calm and collected on the outside, but inside she's furious at herself for being so anxious about her neglectful boyfriend. And Mel is the new girl in town. She's already been dismissed as just another rich kid, but all she wants is to get over some of her fears and find some true friends. But for all their differences, the girls discover they've got one thing in common - they're desperate to escape. Desperate to get the heck out of Niceville and discover their true 'badass' selves! Even if it's just for the weekend... One 'borrowed' car later, it's time to hit the road and head for Miami. Hearts will be broken, friendships will be tested, and a ridiculously hot stranger could change the course of everything.

I read We Were Liars last year and I thought it was a really clever book and whizzed through it, this I was drawn to just because E.Lockhart, I was hoping for another cleverly written book with a bit of a shock perhaps.

This is a book about three girls who go on a road trip to Miami for the weekend. Each have their own reasons for wanting to go, some of which we don't find out until quite far into the book. Vicky is a fun, always up for a laugh type of girl, who is missing her boyfriend. He is currently studying at Miami university, although he has only been away for two weeks, he hasn't called Vicky and she is beginning to wonder why. Jesse is Vicky's best friend and a christian, this is where I begin to have an issue with this book. Jesse was constantly trying to bring her views and values into everything Vicky said, she was portrayed as being uptight most of the time and I just couldn't warm to her. I also really disliked the way she seemed to have a problem with Mel. Mel is the final girl on the road trip, the new girl, who moved from Canada. Mel has very few friends and is portrayed as a little insecure rich girl, she seemed to use her money to buy friendships. All the girls are waitresses at the Waffle store, this is how they all know each other. Unfortunately I don't think the characters were that well developed, I felt that even at the end of the book I still didn't know an awful lot about them.

The book is told through the perspective of all three girls along their road trip, and it spans a period of three days.

I did enjoy reading the road trip, however I think that some of the situations the girls find themselves in are a little unbelievable, the alligator close call towards the end I think was a little silly. My favourite parts were going to the keg party, meeting Marco and their trip to Disney.

This was a super quick book to read, I read it in just two sittings. This is a light, summer, contemporary read that is going to be perfect for the beach or during the holidays. I did feel a little disappointed at the end, I didn't realise that it was the end to be honest and I was left wanting a little bit more as I thought it didn't feel finished. Saying this I did like the ending, it was sweet. I am still left with quite a few questions though about a couple of the girls and it would have been nice for these to have been answered, unless this is going to be the first in a series? I haven't heard anything about that though. But then again I don't think this was meant to be a deep book, it was just a light easy going read.

Even though I did have a few issues with the book, overall I enjoyed it and believe it set out to do what it was intended for.

The three different authors I am assuming have written a character each, I personally do not know who wrote which character, however I have only read one book by E. Lockhart and nothing by the other authors. You can find out if you want to know once you have finished reading.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

We Were Liars - E. Lockhart

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

WHAT'S IT ABOUT?

We are the Liars.

We are beautiful, privileged and live a life of carefree luxury.

We are cracked and broken.

A story of love and romance.

A tale of tragedy.

Which are lies?

Which is truth?

This book I am finding difficult to review without giving anything away. I promise I won't give anything away so stick with me.

I bought this book on the strength of other peoples recommendations on Twitter and Booktube. This is THE talked about book this summer, and although everyone won't tell you anything about it; to not spoil your enjoyment, it is a book that has been raved about.

So, starting off I love the fact there is a little map in the front of the book, this to me gives it a great big thumbs up. This helps you visualise the island and the ground that is covered.

To be honest I found this book a little difficult to get into at first, knowing what was going on and who was who. I feel having a few hours to get into first would help you and enable you to enjoy the book more. It is beautifully written and this gave me the urge to continue reading; the nice thing about this book is that the chapters are so short, so you can always squeeze an extra one in!

At times I felt the story was a little slow and not a lot happened throughout of it until the last part of the book, this was a huge shock and although the suspense was being built towards the end, I didn't see that outcome coming. I also felt that once I had finished the book, this is the type of novel I would want to go back and re-read as I feel I would experience different emotions knowing what was coming.

Throughout the story there are 'fairytales' which are adapted as it goes on. To begin with I couldn't make the link between these, or even why they were part of the book. However at the end I worked them out and although they were nice to include, again I cannot really see the significance of them. This is something I feel that if I was to re read the story I may understand their presence.

This is a very clever and sophisticated book, which I believe is better suited to older teens and those who are in their early 20's. I am older than this and I enjoyed the book too. This is unlike any book I have previously read, due to the background of the characters; there are many issues that arise in this and I feel a younger teen would struggle to understand some of the politics that occur.

I personally did not read any reviews before hand of this book, neither did I read the inside flap or blurb. I feel that this helped me know absolutely nothing about the book and perhaps how I didn't see the ending coming.

Overall this is a very interesting book and I do suggest you give it a go. The only reason I have not given it 5* is down to the fact I struggled to get into it initially.

Love Letters to the Dead - Ava Dellaira

Love Letters to the Dead by Ava Dellaira
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

'It begins as an assignment for English class: Write a letter to a dead person. Laurel chooses Kurt Cobain because her sister, May, loved him. And he died young, just like May did. 

Soon, Laurel has a notebook full of letters to people like Janis Joplin, Amy Winehouse, Amelia Earhart, Heath Ledger, and more; though she never gives a single one of them to her teacher. She writes about starting high school, navigating new friendships, falling in love for the first time, learning to live with her splintering family. And, finally, about the abuse she suffered while May was supposed to be looking out for her. 

Only then, once Laurel has written down the truth about what happened to herself, can she truly begin to accept what happened to May. And only when Laurel has begun to see her sister as the person she was; lovely and amazing and deeply flawed; can she begin to discover her own path.'


I have found this book really tricky to review. I really wanted to read and review this book and asked for it to be sent from the publishers in exchange for an honest review.

The cover of this book really drew me into it and I had heard so much about it. From reading the blurb it sounded really interesting, I loved the idea of reading a series of letters and enjoy that writing style. However I felt that for me Love Letters to the Dead, did not live up to my expectations.

The Story starts with Laurel being asked to write a letter to a dead person, this sparks her off on writing lots of letters to dead people. Laurel has been through a trauma with her sister May dying and uses the letters as self help.

Unfortunately for me I felt the letters were not written as well as they could have been and ended up being presented in more of a diary style of writing, rather than letters. At times I found it difficult to understand why she was writing to different dead people and took a while for me to make the connection. I feel that in a way it would have been better to have stuck to only one dead person to have written to, instead of many.

At times I was a little unsure of how old Laurel was meant to be, at times, things that were written seemed for a character a lot older such as 16, however there were other occasions when I felt her voice was of one of those from someone a lot younger, which would also link in with her age of 14.

I felt that Laurel to me was not a likable character and I had to force myself to actually take an interest in her, the book itself is relatively short, however at times I felt that it was being dragged out.

There are many emotions present in this book, all of which I feel are dealt with very well. I did find the book a rather depressing one, which I was a little disappointed with. What did make me want to continue the story was the 'secret' that Laurel was also bottling up, I wanted to get to the bottom of it.

There are some wonderful lines in the book and the description at times really draws you in. These are two of my favourite. I loved this description of when Laurel is with Sky.

'It was then I could feel that moths in him, with their wings so paper - thin, will never be near enough to the light. They will always want to be nearer - to be inside of it.'

And when Laurel is remembering times with May:

'I saw her fairly wings come out. I saw them trying to flutter to keep her up. To take her back. But I'd broken them. I saw the wings like tissue paper break off and float into the sky as she fell.'

Overall I did enjoy the story and think that there are some beautiful passages in it. However it didn't capture me in the way I had hoped. I did think it was depressing at times, not all the letters Laurel writes are sad but the emotions take you on a roller coaster of a ride. I can see why people are getting excited about this debut author as she can definitely write well. This is a thought provoking read, that may help you deal with grief, love and friendship.

I would recommend others to read this, and I thank the publisher for sending me this in exchange for an honest review.