TTT. Ten Books That Make Me Laugh (or at least chuckle)

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by  The Broke and the Bookish

TTT this week is about books that made made me laugh. I started making my list and I realised that contemporary novels are the ones that usually make me laugh or chuckle. I don't read as many contemporary novels as I'd like (I read too much fantasy, I know). So, unfortunately, this will be a small list.

To All The Boys I've Loved Before & PS. I Still Love You, Jenny Han. Oh Lara Jean, you made me laugh from the first moment you decided to make Peter your fake boyfriend. These novels are super adorable and if you're in need of a laugh or chuckle I completely recommend them to you.

The Fill-In Boyfriend, Kasie West. Another fake-boyfriend plot. Why those always make me laugh?

 
Fangirl, Rainbow Rowell. Cath, I completely understand your obsession with fanfiction. And your are the biggest introverted in the world, after me, of course. So, fanfiction, introvert Cath plus Levi (if you are wondering who Levi is, go read the the story) means a lot of chuckles. Who wants a dancing party?  

The Shopaholic Series, Sophie Kinsella. Becky Bloomwood. Enough said, right? I mean, I laughed at the way she tried to avoid her bills. I laughed at her crazy schemes. I can't remember a single page that I didn't laugh or, at least, chuckle.

*Here it's my small list. I should read more contemporary novels - feel free to make recommendations (especially those that make a reader laugh).

Review 14. Gracie's Song by Michelle Schlicher

Title: Gracie's Song
Author: Michelle Schlicher
Publisher: Smashwords Edition
Published: March 11th 2016
Pages: Ebook

"Everything can be undone." That's what someone tells Gracie Brannen, but she's doubtful. After graduation, she walked away from everyone she knew with barely a word. Ten years later, she's back. Even as familiar places and faces bring back old pain, Gracie finds hope in rebuilding old ties and forging new ones. Maybe everything can't be undone, but perhaps everything can be overcome.

Once a while there is a book that makes you think how life is never what you wish and how unpredictable it can be. Gracie’s Song is a beautiful story that shows life has bumps and is hurtful, but also that happiness is just around the corner. 

Plot: It has been ten years since Gracie Brannen left Glenwood, the small town where she grew up. She left everything and everyone she loved behind without a word. However, after the tragic news of her mother’s death, Gracie finds herself facing the memories of the life and the people she thought she had left behind for good.

Gracie's Song is a short heart-warming story. I didn't expect to love it as much as I did, but the plot quickly grabbed my attention. I was feeling a reading slump approaching and I can say that Gracie's Song saved me from it because I couldn't put the book down. I wanted to know more about Gracie and her troubled past and about the people that surrounded her.

Michelle Schlicher writing is simple (not a bad thing). There is character development - which is done perfectly. How many writers can do it perfectly? The romance isn't overwhelming, but it's perfectly adorable (I think I may have a crush on Finn). How couldn't this book become one of my favourites?

Characters: The characters were brilliantly written (they all came across real) as well as the relationships between them. The relationship between Gracie and her sister and how they rebuilt it after ten years apart was very well written. Also, the relationship between Gracie and Finn was so pure (I'm lacking words to describe it). Even after ten years and a few relationships in-between, the two still had strong feelings for each other. And Finn is every girls' dream.

I loved Gracie, as I found her flawlessly imperfect. Everything about her was intriguing and mysterious. Slowly, her past is revealed in flashbacks - I really enjoyed how there were flashbacks from her childhood to her teenager years - and you get to know her and what she has been through. Gracie never became a sour person even if she had all the reasons to become. Her past was painful and although she had the love of her mother, her sister and Finn, she was screwed up (I apologized for my language) by her alcoholic father. I found myself wanting to hug Gracie so many times (especially when she finally revealed why she left Glenwood all those years ago).

Cons: The only thing I didn't like about this novel was its cover. Fell free, to call me shallow, but this cover... I wish I could use emoji to describe how much I dislike it. I think an attractive cover influences the reader to choose a book from a shelf and I confess that I’d never pick up this book because of its cover - which would be a shame, because it's such a great book.

I received this ARC from the author Michelle Schlicher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you. PS. I really love(d) this book.

Cover Reveal. A Torch Against the Night

And the thing is: I don't know if I like it or not. :S I was super excited when Sabaa Tahir announced that the cover was going to be revealed today (you can check it here; you may also read the first chapter of A Torch Against the Night). I love the cover of An Ember in the Ashes, but the thing is I love the cover from 2015. Razorbill released the book with a new cover last February, which I wasn't so fond of, and this cover is a lot more alike the new one. So, maybe I'm over the fence because I hate when publishers change the covers -specially because it won't look good in my bookshelf and/or book collection. Well, just four more months (which is equivalent to 4 years to a bookworm) and I'll finally know what happens to Laia and Elias.

A Torch Against the Night is expected to be released on August 30th 2016.

"A Torch Against the Night takes readers into the heart of the Empire as Laia and Elias fight their way north to liberate Laia’s brother from the horrors of Kauf Prison. Hunted by Empire soldiers, manipulated by the Commandant, and haunted by their pasts, Laia and Elias must outfox their enemies and confront the treacherousness of their own hearts.

In the city of Serra, Helene Aquilla finds herself bound to the will of the Empire’s twisted new leader, Marcus. When her loyalty is questioned, Helene finds herself taking on a mission to prove herself—a mission that might destroy her, instead."

Cover Reveal. A Shadow Bright and Burning by Jessica Cluess

I'm in love with this cover. A beautiful rose burning? Gosh, I'm officially as much in love with the cover as I'm with the summary! *.* This was one of the first books I added to my 2016 wishilist and I've been counting the days to have it. Just a few more months...just a few more months...

A Shadow Bright and Burning is expected to be released on September 20th 2016.

"Henrietta Howel can burst into flames. Forced to reveal her power to save a friend, she's shocked when instead of being executed, she's invited to train as one of Her Majesty's royal sorcerers.

Thrust into the glamour of Victorian London, Henrietta is declared the chosen one, the girl who will defeat the Ancients, bloodthirsty demons terrorizing humanity. She also meets her fellow sorcerer trainees, handsome young men eager to test her power and her heart. One will challenge her. One will fight for her. One will betray her.

But Henrietta Howel is not the chosen one. As she plays a dangerous game of deception, she discovers that the sorcerers have their own secrets to protect. With battle looming, what does it mean to not be the one? And how much will she risk to save the city--and the one she loves?

Exhilarating and gripping, Jessica Cluess's spellbinding fantasy introduces Henrietta Howel, a powerful, unforgettable heroine, and an entertaining world filled with magic, monsters, and mayhem.."

Cover Reveal. Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor

Isn't this cover pretty? *.* I can't believe it has finally been revealed1 I confess I've only read Daughter of Smoke & Bone *goes hidding in a corner full of shame*, but it was such a beautiful and intriguing novel that I can't wait to read its sequels. Hopefully, I'll do it before Strange the Dreamer is released. 

Strange the Dreamer is expected to be released on September 27th 2016.

"Strange the Dreamer is the story of:

the aftermath of a war between gods and men
a mysterious city stripped of its name
a mythic hero with blood on his hands
a young librarian with a singular dream
a girl every bit as perilous as she is imperiled
alchemy and blood candy, nightmares and godspawn, moths and monsters, friendship and treachery, love and carnage.

Welcome to Weep."

Waiting on Wednesday - A Court of Mist and Fury

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week on WoW is A Court of Mist and Fury by  Sarah J. Maas. I'm sure you must be already tired of hearing me (well, it's more reading than hearing) talking about this novel. I'm always mentioning how much I want it; how much I'm afraid of reading it because I love(d) A Court of  Thorns and Roses; how I'm praying that Rhysand doesn't become a love interest (the first novel would be pretty pointless if it happened). I wanted to promise this will be the last time you hear of this book, but I can't make such promise...But I'll try not to be too annoying. The book will be released on May 3rd.

"Feyre survived Amarantha's clutches to return to the Spring Court--but at a steep cost. Though she now has the powers of the High Fae, her heart remains human, and it can't forget the terrible deeds she performed to save Tamlin's people.

Nor has Feyre forgotten her bargain with Rhysand, High Lord of the feared Night Court. As Feyre navigates its dark web of politics, passion, and dazzling power, a greater evil looms--and she might be key to stopping it. But only if she can harness her harrowing gifts, heal her fractured soul, and decide how she wishes to shape her future--and the future of a world cleaved in two.

With more than a million copies sold of her beloved Throne of Glass series, Sarah J. Maas's masterful storytelling brings this second book in her seductive and action-packed series to new heights. "

From Goodreads

Review 13. A Study in Charlotte by Britanny Cavallaro

Title: A Study in Charlotte
Author: Brittany Cavallaro
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Published: March 1st 2016
Pages: 336 pages

"The last thing Jamie Watson wants is a rugby scholarship to Sherringford, a Connecticut prep school just an hour away from his estranged father. But that’s not the only complication: Sherringford is also home to Charlotte Holmes, the famous detective’s great-great-great-granddaughter, who has inherited not only Sherlock’s genius but also his volatile temperament. From everything Jamie has heard about Charlotte, it seems safer to admire her from afar.

From the moment they meet, there’s a tense energy between them, and they seem more destined to be rivals than anything else. But when a Sherringford student dies under suspicious circumstances, ripped straight from the most terrifying of the Sherlock Holmes stories, Jamie can no longer afford to keep his distance. Jamie and Charlotte are being framed for murder, and only Charlotte can clear their names. But danger is mounting and nowhere is safe—and the only people they can trust are each other."

In A Study in Charlotte Sherlock Holmes and John Watson are more than fictional characters created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Holmes and Watson were real people and a century later, their descendants, Charlotte Holmes and Jamie Watson, find themselves being framed for murder and must find the true killer before he finds them...

Plot: After winning a rugby scholarship, Jamie Watson finds himself in Sherringford, a prep school in Connecticut; the same school where Charlotte Holmes studies. Jamie always imagined living great adventures with Charlotte as his great-great-great-grandfather lived with Sherlock in the past. But Charlotte's peculiar temperament (just like her great-great-great-grandfather's) keeps Jamie at bay. One night, one of their classmates is found dead - the same boy with whom Jamie brawled and who Charlotte despised. Being accused, Jamie and Charlotte must work together and discover who the real culprit is.

I found the idea of a YA modern day retelling of Sherlock Holmes very intriguing. The adventures of Sherlock Holmes and John Watson brought to the 21st century? I had to read it (even if I'm not a big Sherlock expert). I was even more intrigued when I learned that the Holmes in this novel was a girl.   

A Study in Charlotte is told in Jamie's POV and Britanny Cavallaro made a great job at not making Jamie sound like a girl (a few authors struggle at writing a male perspective). The story is well-written and the mystery is entrancing. I couldn't wait to know who the culprit was (which I didn't have a clue of who was until the very ending). I enjoyed the story's pace - one moment it was slow and on another something major was happening. I simply couldn't put the book down.

Characters: I liked Jamie, even though I was not fond of the you-make-me-angry-so-I-hit-you-attitude and his initial "obsession" with Charlotte. He is a loyal friend to Charlotte. As a good Holmes, she keeps him in the dark and yet Jamie stays by her side. But Charlotte, I can't say I liked her. I've read a couple of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's stories about Sherlock before and of what I can remember, I didn't dislike Sherlock or his actions (he could be an idiot, but was a likeable idiot). Charlotte acted like Sherlock in every way, but she always came across a spoiled brat - perhaps I felt it because she is a teenager. I didn't connect with Charlotte (even after learning what she went through).

Downsides: For me, two themes weren't handled properly: Charlotte's drug addiction and the theme of rape. About the first point, everyone acted as Charlotte's addiction to oxy was normal. "She's a Holmes. Of course she is doing drugs. Let her keep doing it". Only Jamie tried to do something to stop her. It was a very unreal situation. I will not address the second point too much because I don't want to spoil the plot, but rape was dealt in very lightly way. Why mention something so serious and write it as it's nothing?  If it was not for the way these subjects were approached and Charlotte's lack of charm, this novel would have been without doubt one of my favorites.

A Study in Charlotte is an entrancing mystery that brings the adventures of Sherlock Holmes to the 21st century.