Book Review: Three More Words by Ashley Rhodes-Courter

Publisher: Atheneum
Publish Date: June 30th, 2015
ISBN: 9781481415576
Pages: 290
Series: Sequel to Three Little Words
Source: ARC from publisher for honest review

Goodreads Synopsis:

In the sequel to the New York Times bestselling memoir Three Little Words, Ashley Rhodes-Courter expands on life beyond the foster care system, the joys and heartbreak with a family she’s created, and her efforts to make peace with her past.
Ashley Rhodes-Courter spent a harrowing nine years of her life in fourteen different foster homes. Her memoir, Three Little Words, captivated audiences everywhere and went on to become a New York Times bestseller as well as a movie produced by the team who brought you Twilight. Now Ashley reveals the nuances of life after foster care: College and its assorted hijinks, including meeting “the one.” Marriage, which began with a beautiful wedding on a boat that was almost hijacked (literally) by some biological family members. Having kids—from fostering children and the heartbreak of watching them return to destructive environments, to the miraculous joy of blending biological and adopted offspring.
Whether she’s overcoming self-image issues, responding to calls for her to run for Senate, or dealing with continuing drama from her biological family, Ashley Rhodes-Courter never fails to impress or inspire with her authentic voice and uplifting message.

My Review:

I was interested in reading this memoir because this genre has been intriguing me ever since I heard about My Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness, and thought that I should throw some of these books into my mix. So it was perfect that Simon & Schuster would send along Three More Words. I was going to start at the beginning with Ashley Rhodes-Courter's first book, Three Little Words but I was on a tight schedule with everything and wouldn't have had the time to read that one along with book #2 before it was released, so I caught up as much as I could online. Googling her story, reading excerpts, reviews, I figured I wasn't missing out on anything that was crucial going into book 2. 
The story behind Three More Words is a good story but to be honest, I found the writing a little dry and it did not flow very well. I found it very hard to get into her story. It read almost like point form, and it seemed to bounce all over and unfortunately it didn't grip my attention. I flipped to the pictures and saw enough there to kind of figure out most of the story. Sadly, I was kind of glad when I flipped to the last page and could move on to something else. I haven't read a lot of memoirs, because I am worried about my attention span with them, but this has been the first one that hasn't been able to hook me until the end. Don't get me wrong, the story that Ashley Rhodes-Courter is telling is a great one. The foster care system and how it deals with these poor children being torn from their only family (brothers/sisters if they have them) and moving them from one place to another is tough but no one is truly alone. What Ashley Rhodes-Courter is doing - the public speaking, writing books, advocating for others and showing them that they can beat the foster care system is inspiring. I would encourage anyone who needs to, to reach out and read this book, contact her or someone like her and know that there is hope for adoption, a life and a happy ever after.

While Three More Words was not the book for me, I know it will change the lives of many others out there, and that is all that matters.

Book Review: Dime by E.R. Frank

Publish Date: May 26th, 2015
Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers
ISBN: 9781481431606
Pages: 336
Series: None
Source: ARC from publisher for honest review

Goodreads Synopsis:

As a teen girl in Newark, New Jersey, lost in the foster care system, Dime just wants someone to care about her, to love her. A family. And that is exactly what she gets-a daddy and two "wifeys." So what if she has to go out and earn some coins to keep her place? It seems a fair enough exchange for love.
Dime never meant to become a prostitute. It happened so gradually, she pretty much didn't realize it was happening until it was too late.
But when a new "wifey" joins the family and Dime finds out that Daddy doesn't love her the way she thought he did, will Dime have the strength to leave? And will Daddy let her?

My Review:

Dime was a very tough read. It’s about the terrible world of sex-trafficking and in it we follow the life of 13 year old Dime who just wants to fit and be loved. She grew up in foster care with other young kids with whom she was partially responsible for. Going to school, getting medicine, taking care of babies and trying to keep men’s hands off her was all that Dime ever did. She’s uncomfortable with the older foster boys’ advances on her, not to mention Janelle’s men that come and go but this is what Dime has come to expect and knows when things get out of hand she is to blend into the background and be unseen and unheard.

For all of Dimes short life she has wanted to feel loved, and when she escapes one night to the street after a bad night at Janelles and gets handed a winter jacket and offered a place to stay another night she thinks life is starting to look up. Daddy, the man who offers her a place to stay doesn’t seem too bad. He gives her a place to sleep, and food to eat and he shows Dime enough love that she starts to feel special. Dime goes back to the foster home one day because she can’t pull her weight and provide money to live with Daddy anymore. Once back here, she feels the hole that she believes Daddy filled with his love, and food and shelter. She goes back to him, and says she will do whatever is needed to earn her keep. This is when the poor young girl becomes a prostitute, and things go so far downhill that she can’t pick herself up.

Dime is told in her perspective and told through letters that Dime is trying to write. The letters being the one thing that Dime hopes someone will see and do the right thing to save these poor girls. It’s not just Dime involved, it’s Daddy’s other “wifeys” and the many others that Dime sees through her journey to get the prize that Daddy keeps talking about. As I said before, Dime is a hard read. Lollipop, an 11 year old brought into this way of life by Uncle Ray is when I had the hardest time with this novel. It made me cry to be honest when they introduced her.

It’s brutally honest, viciously terrifying, and extremely disturbing at times. The letters written by Dime, as told in the narrative of Lollipop, Sex, Money and Truth will open your eyes to a world that you might have turned away from. The plea for help is heart wrenching.

This novel is a work of fiction but E.R. Frank made it a work of dark, deeply disturbing, extreme sadness and it's a reality for some, and she did it well. She makes the reader realize the ugly truth behind human trafficking. And sometimes the truth is enough. Being aware and knowing the truth can save a life.

Book Review: Girl Defective by Simmone Howell

Publish Date: September 2nd, 2014
Publisher: Atheneum Books For Young Readers
ISBN: 9781442497603
Pages: 320
Series: None
Source: ARC from publisher for honest review

Goodreads Synopsis:
In the tradition of High Fidelity and Empire Records, this is the literary soundtrack to Skylark Martin's strange, mysterious, and extraordinary summer.
This is the story of a wild girl and a ghost girl; a boy who knew nothing and a boy who thought he knew everything.
It's a story about Skylark Martin, who lives with her father and brother in a vintage record shop and is trying to find her place in the world. It's about ten-year-old Super Agent Gully and his case of a lifetime. And about beautiful, reckless, sharp-as-knives Nancy. It's about tragi-hot Luke, and just-plain-tragic Mia Casey. It's about the dark underbelly of a curious neighborhood. It's about summer, and weirdness, and mystery, and music.
And it's about life and death and grief and romance. All the good stuff.

My Review:
Let's be honest here, for the first half of the book I thought I was reading a book called "Girl Detective" and while there is ironically detective work throughout the novel, something just wasn't sitting right for me. It wasn't until I finally realized that I had the wrong name the whole time that I finally got into the book and read it for what it was. And it was fantastic!! The story, the characters - oh the characters!! - everything was perfectly executed in this brilliantly written novel that read like "Perks of Being a Wallflower". That's what I would picture while reading Girl Defective. I was highly reminded of Stephen Chbosky's masterpiece. That and Empire Records, which is just as cool.
Skylar, her brother Gully and their dad own a record store. The mother left them to pursue her rock-star career so it's been the 3 of them since. While her life isn't extraordinary, it's anything but ordinary. Gully or Agent Seagull Martin is a detective (hence why I was convinced of the wrong title!) and he is out to save the world from your "brickers", "snouters", and other petty criminals. I really liked Gully, there was something about him that really stuck with me. His kindness towards everyone, his fun personality. He was definitely my favourite character. Skylar was likable too. She's just a young girl trying to get through life the best she can with what she has. She's funny and loves her brother even with all his quirks. Nancy, Skylars older, more experienced (in everything) friend is a force to be reckoned with. She was up and down and all over the place but played a huge part in the whole awesomeness of the book.
There's not much I can say about the book really, just that it was great! It's one of the books that you'll have to read yourself, and it will sit on your shelf after you read it for the first time and in a few years you will pick it back up and read it in one sitting (just like Perks), It's that kind of book! I also loved that in my ARC, there was a note from Vice President, Publisher for Atheneum Books, Margaret K. McElderry books and S&S books that said " This book is FAR cooler than I will ever be! I hope you enjoy."
That just about says it all!

Book Review: Enshadowed by Kelly Creagh

Publisher: Atheneum Books
Publish Date: Aug 28th, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-442-40204-1
Pages: 488
Series: Nevermore, #2
Source: ARC from publisher

Goodreads Synopsis:
True love takes a twisted turn in the second book of this modern gothic romance trilogy channeling the dark brilliance of Edgar Allan Poe.While Varen remains a prisoner in a perilous dream world where the terrifying stories of Edgar Allan Poe come to life, Isobel travels to Baltimore to confront the dark figure known throughout the world as the Poe Toaster. This man, the same man who once appeared to Isobel in her dreams and abandoned her in Varen’s nightmare world, holds the key to saving Varen.
     But when Isobel discovers a way to return to this dream world, she finds herself swept up in a realm that not only holds remnants of Edgar Allan Poe’s presence, but has also now taken on the characteristics of Varen’s innermost self. It is a dark world of fear, terror, and anger.
     When Isobel once more encounters Varen, she finds him changed. And now Isobel must face a new adversary—one who also happens to be her greatest love.

My Review:
Enshadowed follows the journey of Isobel and Varen. Varen had yet to return from the dreamworld and people are starting to wonder where he is, including Isobel who keeps getting glimpses of him here and there. Questions are answered for us but not without leading us deeper into this unknown realm.

Throughout Enshadowed he author keeps us on our toes with mystery and keeps things rolling with the plot. Her writing is great and descriptive, with the setting clearly painted in our heads. I will admit that I enjoyed the first part of Nevermore, book #1 more than anything so far. I loved the human aspect of the book and thoroughly enjoyed Varen and Isobels relationship grow. I loved how things were as humanly simple as it could be. That's not to say that I didn't enjoy Enshadowed, but reading books about demons and such isn't always my cup of tea, though to be honest, I found myself more and more interested as the book went on. But the human interaction between Isobel and her father, brother and her friend Gwen, were great and kept things real for me. The dynamic relationships in Kelly Creagh's work is refreshing. 

The characters in Enshadowed are memorable and written very well. There was something about Pinfeathers that I liked. He was mysterious and very interesting and I was always curious as to when he would show up and what he had to say. Gwen is a fun character who livens things up and is a good balance to Isobels serious demeanor.

Overall, Enshadowed was a good book, and a must read if you've read Nevermore. I was hooked and read this book everywhere and I'm sure you will too.