angelreads, Author at Angel Reads

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Book Review: On The Fence by Kasie West

Jun 27, 2014

On the Fence by Kasie West

Pages: 320 (paperback)
Publish date: July 1st (US and Australia), July 31st (UK)
Publisher: Harper Collins
ISBN: 0062235672
Purchase: Book Depository – Amazon UK – Amazon US – Amazon AU

She’s a tomboy. He’s the boy next door…

Charlie Reynolds can outrun, outscore, and outwit every boy she knows. But when it comes to being a girl, Charlie doesn’t know the first thing about anything. So when she starts working at a chichi boutique to pay off a speeding ticket, she finds herself in a strange new world. To cope with the stress of her new reality, Charlie takes to spending nights chatting with her neighbor Braden through the fence between their yards. As she grows to depend on their nightly Fence Chats, she realizes she’s got a bigger problem than speeding tickets-she’s falling for Braden. She knows what it means to go for the win, but if spilling her secret means losing him for good, the stakes just got too high.

On the Fence:

I received an ARC of On the Fence from Harper Teen Australia, this in no way influenced my review.

First Line: ‘The engine whined against my attempt to go faster.’

I had never read a Kasie West book before I picked up On the Fence and I am hating myself for not doing it before. She is such an amazing writer, captures emotions so well.

Charlie is a tomboy, there is no denying it. She doesn’t wear makeup, she dresses without much care and she hangs out with boys and, you know what, I loved her. It’s rare that I read a book with a girl protagonist that isn’t worried about what she wears, or if she is wearing makeup. It was different, but nice.

I loved the writing style of Kasie West. It was interesting and it intrigued me to keep on reading. The book started off with a bang and just kept on getting better and better as it went on.

I thought it was be a sappy contemporary romance instead novel, but it was so much more. It turned into a mystery novel somehow, it was so good. Yes, there were still those snappy romance moments, but it made them so much more glorious.

I loved Charlie’s brothers. Yes, they may have been over protective, but, once you find out why, you kind of understand why they were protective. Each one of them were from the other, but they all related to Charlie in some way. It was different seeing sibling interaction, as again in YA there isn’t much of yet when there is they aren’t the best relationships. So it was nice seeing good sibling relationships.

Dreams are messages, things out minds want us to learn. Recurring dreams can be really important messages. they often come in the form of nightmares. Recurring dreams could represent a real-life problem that hasn’t been dealt with or resolved. Overcoming or resolving that problem could help one move past the recurring dream. – ARC pg82

She even had a pretty okay relationship with her father. I didn’t mind her father at all. Yes, he was a little strict, but I can again understand why. I normally don’t like parents all that much in Young Adult books, so that is another thumbs up to Kasie.

Branden, he is just amazing and not to mention the boy next door. Charlie and Branden’s ‘Fence’ moments were just so cute and moving and heartbreaking. Just everything all at once.

On the Fence was funny and cute as well as very moving. Charlie struggles the whole book with the death of her mother and she doesn’t know how to be a ‘girl.’ She can’t get over her mother’s death and as the book goes on we see why.

On the Fence reminded me a lot of Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry in the sense of suppressed memories. Which intrigued me a lot. It’s an interesting concept that no matter how many times it’s done it always seem different.

I laughed, I cried and I swooned. On the Fence was simply just gorgeous. Kasie’s writing is brilliant and beautiful. It was entertaining and the banter between Charlie and her brothers and Charlie and Braden just added so much to the book. The heart-warming family moments also added so much depth to the book.

Sometimes we expect more that people are capable of giving at the moment

The romance between Charlie and Braden was simply beautiful–the true nature of friends becoming more. They were totally adorable together and the scenes on the fence were just so brilliant.

Over all On the Fence is a book of self-discovery, love, friendship and family. The tales of a girl becoming a ‘girl’, finding love and friendship. On the Fence is mesmerizing, moving and funny.

Cover Reveal: The Book of Days by K.A Barker + Giveaway

Jun 25, 2014

I have the wonderful chance to reveal the cover for The Book of Days by debut author K.A Barker. And let me tell you the cover is simply gorgeous. So without further ado *drum roll* here is the beautiful cover.
The Book of Days by K.A Baker

Publish date: September 2014
Publisher: Pan Macmillan
Purchase: Amazon US – Amazon AU

Most people believe the best way to forget someone is to throw them down a well. Or lock them in a room with eight keys, or bury them at a crossroad in the thirteenth hour. But they’re wrong. The best way to forget someone is for them never to have existed in the first place.
When sixteen-year-old Tuesday wakes from sleep for the first time, she opens her eyes to a world filled with wonder – and peril. Left with only a letter from the person she once was, Tuesday sets out to discover her past with the help of her charming and self-serving guide, Quintalion.
Along the way she runs into one-legged mercenaries, flying cities, airships, and a blind librarian. But danger lurks amidst the steam. Tuesday will need all her wits to survive long enough to find out who she is and her connection with the mysterious Book of Days: a book that holds untold power … existed in the first place.

The cover is gorgeous isn’t it? The colours just everything.

About the Author

K. A. Barker is a twenty-something writer from Brisbane, Australia. She writes books about imaginary places and impossible deeds. Her first Young Adult novel, The Book of Days, is due out in September from Pan Macmillan Australia. She is fond of dirigibles, good books, shower singing, cheesy adventure movies, and time periods not her own..

Website – Twitter – Facebook

K.A Barker the lovely lady as she is will also be hosting not 1 but 3 amazing giveaways. Check out K.A’s blog post for more information about the giveaways and I am telling you to enter because the prizes are just…I need them.

1st Giveaway: It’s all about the twitter. Tweet about the amazing book cover, or just about the book. What ever you want. Don’t forget to include K.A twitter handle: @k_a_barker

2nd Giveaway: K.A has given each of the 7 bloggers revealing her cover to the world a question each. You will then need to answer, once you have all 7 answers email them off to K.A Barker at k.a.barkerwrites@gmail.com.

My question is:

What is one of the things that Tuesday comes across in her journey?

a) A blind librarian

b) tap-dancing mummies

c) A very confused time traveller

3rd Giveaway: All you need to do is go and check out K.A Barker’s blog and comment on what ever you like that simple.

Each winner will win:

1. A signed copy of The Book of Days when it’s released in September.

2. A $30 gift voucher to the bookstore of your choice

3. A hug if we ever happen to meet, to be delivered either a) bone-crunchingly hard, or b) awkward family reunion.

What do you think of the The Book of Days Cover? Are you excited to read the book?

Don’t forget to like me on Facebook, follow me on bloglovin, and catch me on twitter, for more from me. You can also subscribe to receive my posts via email. Check it out in the sidebar!

New Feature: Bookish Style

Jun 21, 2014

Welcome everyone to my new and (hopefully) exciting feature, Bookish Style! A few weeks ago while in class, my mind went some where else (like always), and then – BAM! This idea of Bookish style come into my head. Apart from books and art, I also love fashion! Just everything about it. I love looking at what all the stars wear to all the award shows, or simply what they wear out. I love looking at all the new collections by designers, just everything about it. So after a couple weeks of ‘intense’ planning here it is!

So, what is Bookish Style, you may ask?

Well every week I will pick at random either a book cover, a character, a certain theme from a book… anything really – and create a clothing set that that is inspired from it. So one week it might be a book cover and maybe it’s the clothing on the cover that I am inspired by, or the colours used on the cover – whatever it may be. I may do more than one style that’s inspired by the book, or it may just be one.

I really hope that you enjoy this new feature, I am super duper excited about it and cannot wait to share. I would also like to hear what book cover/characters etc you would like to see turned into something wearable – if you have a request, don’t be afraid to suggest something to me. You can tell me on Twitter @angel_reads, leave suggestions in the comments, or you can also email me at angel@angelreads.com.

So for the first week, I am going to bookish style one of my favourite covers of all time These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufamn and Megan Spooner.

And here it is… the dress I chose because it was very similar in colour to that of the cover but has a modern twist to it. The sliver accessory’s are inspired by the stars.

I hope you like the first style, you can find it my polyvore account if you like any of the items. Don’t forget to like me on Facebook, follow me on bloglovin, and catch me on twitter, for more from me. You can also subscribe to receive my posts via email. Check it out in the sidebar!