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Blog Tour: The Secret Science of Magic by Melissa Keil

Apr 2, 2017

The Secret Science of Magic by Melissa Keil

Pages: 328
Publish date: April 1st, 2017
Publisher: Hardie Grant Egmont
ISBN: 9781760127763
Purchase: Book Depository – Amazon AU – Booktopia – Angus & Robertson Bookworld

The unsolvable problem: If Sophia is a genius, why can’t she crack the puzzle of what to do with her life?

Fact: Sophia is smart. As in, certified-child-prodigy, breezing-through-uni-subjects-even-though-she’s-only-in-year-twelve smart. This terrifies her, because geniuses have a tendency to end up as recluses and weirdos – and with her current social ineptness, she’s halfway there already.

Truth: Joshua is good at magic tricks, ignoring most things about year twelve, and not thinking at all about life after high school.
Fact: Sophia can’t even talk to her best friend Elsie about her anxieties, because Elsie is firmly focused on her own future – and on plans that will mean leaving Sophia behind.
Truth: Joshua has had a secret crush on Sophia since forever, but he doesn’t have forever to act on it.
Fact: There are some things no amount of genius can prepare you for … and the messiness of the real world is one of them.
Truth: Timing is everything.

The Secret Science of Magic:

Now, I thought I would have a little fun with my stop on The Secret Science of Magic by Melissa Keil blog tour. So kick back and relax, today you are getting a review and a cupcake recipe!

I received an arc of The Secret Science of Magic by Melissa Keil from Hardie Grant Egmont in exchange for an honest review. This has in no way influenced my thoughts and feelings about the book.

The Secret Science of Magic by Melissa Keil follows protagonist Sophia and Joshua. Two very different people who come together in their last year of high school in unforeseeable circumstances that might just work out to be the best thing for them both.

Sophia is a genius – a maths genius. She is her last year of high school, but breezing through university courses. However, genius’ tend to be recluse and weirdos, who either excel or fail. And Sophia feels like she is on the path to failure. With everything building up in her – she doesn’t need any more trouble.

Sophia was an interesting protagonist and while not easily relatable. I could connect to her on other levels. I adored that The Secret Science of Magic had a focus on leaving high school and deciding what you are going to do next. It’s what so many people have to go through and it hit hard. The anxiety that Sophia feels throughout the book was just so spot on. That was me 3 years, it’s still me today. And I could feel it deep inside me.

Josh was totally adorable. He has had a crush on Sophia for quite a couple of years, and with the end of high school looming – he knows that he has to tell her. But instead of just saying it to her face, he decides to woo her – with magic! I love illusionist and magicians. I find them fascinated and I love working out how things are done – so I found a kinship with Josh. He is also awkward and funny.

The romance was adorable. I loved how Sophia and Joshua were both so unsure about what to do, but they fit with each other so well. Sophia, I think needed someone like Josh not just as a love interest, but as a friend. Someone who understood her even when she at her worse.

Friendship is also another big aspect of The Secret Science of Magic. Sophia only really has one friend when this book starts – and Sophia feels like she is losing her. High School is hard enough, but only having a certain group of friends or friend and then they are off once it ends – that hurts – a lot.

I spoke about this before, but I loved that anxiety was presented in The Secret Science of Magic. It’s so hard leaving school and going into the big wide world and Sophia feels it. But, it’s not just about school, but about life. And when everything that was planned out for you is gone – how do you go on? I really felt the anxiety that Sophia presents within the book. Obvious I am not a genius, so not that part – but everything that comes with it.

Overall, The Secret Science of Magic is an adventure. It’s a beautiful story of coming of age, growing up, and learning. It’s about letting go, and not just finding yourself, but believing in who you can become. It deals with the notion of first love, leaving high school, friendship, family and so much more. It’s one of those books that you pick up and just fall in love.

[yumprint-recipe id=’3′] And that is it for my stop on The Secret Science of Magic Blog Tour. I had so much fun! Have you read The Secret Science of Magic by Melissa Keil? What did you think of it? Have you read any other books by Keil? Don’t forget to check out the rest of the tour!

Book Reivew: Things I Should Have Known by Claire LaZebnik

Mar 26, 2017

Things I Should Have Known by Claire LaZebnik

Pages: 320
Publish date: March 28th, 2017
Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers
ISBN: 0544829697
Purchase: Book Depository – Amazon UK – Amazon US – Amazon AU

From the author of Epic Fail comes the story of Chloe Mitchell, a Los Angeles girl on a quest to find love for her autistic sister, Ivy. Ethan, from Ivy’s class, seems like the perfect match. It’s unfortunate that his older brother, David, is one of Chloe’s least favorite people, but Chloe can deal, especially when she realizes that David is just as devoted to Ethan as she is to Ivy.

Uncommonly honest and refreshingly funny, this is a story about sisterhood, autism, and first love. Chloe, Ivy, David, and Ethan, who form a quirky and lovable circle, will steal readers’ hearts and remind us all that it’s okay to be a different kind of normal.

Things I Should Have Known:

I received an e-arc of Things I Should Have Known by Claire LaZebnik from HMH Books for Young Readers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This has in no way influenced my thoughts and feelings about the book.

I was really looking forward to Things I Should Have Known. It sounded intriguing and pulled me right in with its autism exploration, but, overall I was let down and left hanging for more. I was expecting something powerful and was left in the dust.

Before I keep on going, I would like to acknowledge that no one in my house suffers from autism. However, I have cousins and family friends that do. And some of those I do spend a lot of time with. So even though I don’t know everything, I do understand somethings.

Things I Should Have Known follows Protagonist Chloe Mitchell as she goes on a mission to help her older sister, Ivy, find love. When Chloe realises that her autistic sister wants to find love, she does everything in her power to help her find it. I have a love/hate relationship with Chloe. Overall, I found her to just be okay. I loved that she cared about her sister so much, that she would do so much for her. I loved that she would stand up for Ivy no matter what. But, sometimes her attitude really didn’t sit with me right. Chloe’s voice also wasn’t for me. I found that she sounded quite young – too young at times.

I loved Ivy, she was such a brilliant and complex characters that I wanted to find out more. She was innocent, but the kind that is beautiful and works so well with the story being told. I loved that Ivy wanted to find out things, see what love is, and feel love. It was so beautiful. At one point when Ivy realised something and confided in Chloe, I didn’t know wheatear to cry or smile – in the end, I did both.

The romances in Things I Should Have Known are very different. I am not sure how I feel about Chloe’s, but it still made this novel work. They were real. Ethan, oh my, he is such a sweetheart. I cannot even begin to explain. I just wanted to hold him and tell him everything is going to be okay. David, I’m not too sure how I feel about him, even after finishing the book.

From what I know and understand about autism, I thought that Things I Should Have Known explores an honest and real representation. The struggle, the heartbreak, the ups and the downs. It was all there.

One of the things about Things I Should Have Known is that it’s honest and real. Things are sugar coated. Heartbreaking events happening throughout the book, and they are raw. But they are also real and so important for people to understand.

Writing: While I thought that the story was beautiful and so important. I wasn’t a massive fan of the writing style and even the voice of the protagonist;

Overall, Things I Should Have Known is a raw book. It’s real and the story is beautiful. The novel explores the notion of family and finding love. It’s about not just looking after those you love, but yourself. As well as learning that sometimes you need to let go. While I wasn’t a fan of the writing or the voice of the protagonist, Things I Should Have Known is so important and should be read.

Have you read Things I Should Have Known? What did you think of it? Are you planning on reading it? Have you read anything else by Claire LaZebnik? Let’s Chat!

Diverse Books That I’ve Recently Read and Loved

Mar 10, 2017

The notion of #WeNeedDiverseBooks has become stronger and stronger over the past couple of years. I’ve seen diversity grow in YA and the need for it increase. And although it’s nowhere near where it needs to be – I can see the community and publishers changing.

I am a massive activist for diverse books, especially books that feature disabilities. At the start of this year, I did a week long feature called Disability Diaries. And I plan to continue to talk about health in YA books. If you haven’t already you can check out my post on living with chronic pain.

But, today it’s about diversity, of all kinds. Here are some of the books that I’ve loved over the past couple of months that have included diversity throughout the novel. I can’t be sure that some of these are bad representations. But from what I know and have research – they are pretty good representations.

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas: I don’t think anyone will be surprised that this one is on my list. I adored this book. The Hate U Give is a brilliant and powerful story. It’s heartbreaking, poignant and so so true. It’s a book that everyone should read, and understand | Full Review

Nova by Rebecca Yarros: I love when authors surprise me and this is one of those books. The female protagonist in this book is half Koren from my understand. She was born in Korea and was adopted not long after her birth to an American family. Nevertheless, it wasn’t something that I was expecting and I enjoyed it.

A Tragic Kind of Wonderful by Eric Lindstrom: It explores life, family, and friendships. A poignant novel that explores mental health. And the influence it has on the person, their families and everyone around them. A Tragic Kind of Wonderful is a beautiful story that evokes all types of emotions | Full Review

Him/Us by Sarina Bowen and Elle Kennedy: I know I’ve talked about these two books quite a lot recently. But I was surprised with how much I liked them. One of my favourite things about this series is that it shows two different sides. One protagonist is gay and has been for some time, while the other is finding himself and who he wants to be.

The Secret Science of Magic by Melissa Keil Okay so I read this one last year while I was interning and feel in love. It features a whole range of diversity, included anxiety which I think was explored and represented extremely well | Full Review coming soon

Things I Should Have Known by Claire LaZebnik: Now I am cheating a little here. I didn’t love this book, I liked it a lot. But didn’t love it. However, I thought the representation of autism in this book was so well done. It’s raw, it’s real and it’s beautiful | Full review coming soon

And that is it for this post. These aren’t all the books that I’ve read with diversity, but are a handful that I really enjoyed. Have you read any of these books? Did you like them as much as me? What are some recent books that feature diversity that you have loved? Let’s Chat.

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