Book Review | The Winner’s Crime | Marie Rutkoski

I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Book Review | The Winner’s Crime | Marie RutkoskiThe Winner's Crime by Marie Rutkoski
Series: The Winner's Curse #2
Published by Farrar Straus & Giroux on March 3, 2015
Genres: Fantasy YA, Young Adult
Pages: 416
Format: ARC
Source: the publisher
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five-stars

Book two of the dazzling Winner’s Trilogy is a fight to the death as Kestrel risks betrayal of country for love.

The engagement of Lady Kestrel to Valoria’s crown prince means one celebration after another. But to Kestrel it means living in a cage of her own making. As the wedding approaches, she aches to tell Arin the truth about her engagement…if she could only trust him. Yet can she even trust herself? For—unknown to Arin—Kestrel is becoming a skilled practitioner of deceit: an anonymous spy passing information to Herran, and close to uncovering a shocking secret.

As Arin enlists dangerous allies in the struggle to keep his country’s freedom, he can’t fight the suspicion that Kestrel knows more than she shows. In the end, it might not be a dagger in the dark that cuts him open, but the truth. And when that happens, Kestrel and Arin learn just how much their crimes will cost them.

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Book Review | The Survival Kit | Donna Freitas

Book Review | The Survival Kit | Donna FreitasThe Survival Kit by Donna Freitas
Published by Farrar Straus & Giroux on October 11, 2011
Genres: Contemporary YA, Death/Dying/Grief, Relationships, Romance
Pages: 351
Format: Hardcover
Source: Library
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five-stars

When Rose’s mom dies, she leaves behind a brown paper bag labeled Rose’s Survival Kit. Inside the bag, Rose finds an iPod, with a to-be-determined playlist; a picture of peonies, for growing; a crystal heart, for loving; a paper star, for making a wish; and a  paper kite, for letting go.

As Rose ponders the meaning of each item, she finds herself returning again and again to an unexpected source of comfort. Will is her family’s gardener, the school hockey star, and the only person who really understands what she’s going through. Can loss lead to love?

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Book Review | All These Things I’ve Done | Gabrielle Zevin

Book Review | All These Things I’ve Done | Gabrielle ZevinAll These Things I've Done by Gabrielle Zevin
Series: Birthright #1
Published by Farrar Straus & Giroux on September 6, 2011
Genres: Dystopian YA, Families, Young Adult
Pages: 354
Format: Hardcover
Source: Library
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four-stars

In 2083, chocolate and coffee are illegal, paper is hard to find, water is carefully rationed, and New York City is rife with crime and poverty. And yet, for Anya Balanchine, the sixteen-year-old daughter of the city’s most notorious (and dead) crime boss, life is fairly routine. It consists of going to school, taking care of her siblings and her dying grandmother, trying to avoid falling in love with the new assistant D.A.’s son, and avoiding her loser ex-boyfriend. That is until her ex is accidently poisoned by the chocolate her family manufactures and the police think she’s to blame. Suddenly, Anya finds herself thrust unwillingly into the spotlight–at school, in the news, and most importantly, within her mafia family.

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