Kate and Mark have sat next to each other in calculus all year, but the first time they actually talk is when they run into each other during a night out in the city.  Mark is in love with his best friend Ryan, and Kate has just escaped her friends, afraid to meet the girl she is in love with even though they have never spoken or met before. This chance meeting between Mark and Kate brings them closer than they would ever have thought. ✱ Pages: 256 (hardcover) ✱ Publication date: 7 June 2016 ✱ Provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review ✱ Amazon UK | Amazon US

I've heard David Levithan's name so many times but never read his work before, so when I came across You Know Me Well (co-authored with Nina Lacour!), I was really interested. The title is lovely, and the premise made me think. How well do we know ourselves? How well do our friends and our family know us? What about complete strangers?

The story starts during Pride, and the events unfold over a week, from the initial meeting between Kate and Mark, until the end of their high school careers. Alternating between the points-of-view of Mark and Kate, it's a look at two teenagers on the brink of adulthood, trying to be true to themselves, trying to hold on to old friendships, and trying to navigate the paths of first love. You feel the uncertainty, the pain, the joy along with the characters. 

I loved Kate and Mark, they are wonderful and real, and they have their own issues, and they feel really strongly about friendship and just being there. So yep, I really, really loved them both, so much. There was something very realistic about this book to me, and I'm so happy I got to read it, and to share the journey Kate and Mark were on.

Another thing I love, is the depiction of the LGBT community in You Know Me Well - especially when it comes to teenagers finding somewhere they belong, with people they feel won't judge them. I think it's really important to discuss these topics, in YA literature especially, so I genuinely appreciate what the authors are doing here. This book could be a really important one for teens dealing with coming out, identity, and acceptance from other people.

First loves, friendships, the end of high school, the dreaded future - something we've all gone through.You Know Me Well is delightful, refreshing, and full of feeling.

Have you read David Levithan before? This was my first! Do you have other books in mind that touch upon LGBT themes?

Because am I obsessed? Yes, I admit it, okay?!

Intisar Khanani is an indie author who writes YA fantasy. At the moment I'm just sitting in my room with my grabby hands, waiting for Memories of Ash to come out (TWO DAYS, my lovelies. Two days!). So, I'm going to take this chance to talk about Khanani's other work, because am I really going to be able to talk about something else while I'm this excited?

Reasons Why Intisar Khanani and her Work are Awesome: Pretty covers. I'm sorry but did you see the cover for Thorn? It's one of my favourites. Originality. For example, insta-love is not a thing, even in Thorn which is a fairytale retelling - how much of a change is that from basically every other book ever? This makes me pretty happy. Intisar's stories don't tend to focus on romantic love. It's so refreshing because actually you can meet a prince on page 5 and not end up falling in love. WHO KNEW? Imagination. I'm always surprised by her writing! You know when you read enough of a particular genre and it all starts to feel the same? That never happens with her writing. Important themes. Read Thorn and tell me it doesn't make you think about your own life decisions, or about what's important in life. I dare you ;) Charity. Some of the proceeds go to charity. I don't think I need to even elaborate on that... but I will anyway. Supporting UNICEF or Heifer International when you buy a book doesn't sound too bad, right? (Also the author is so friendly on twitter, and on her website, so you know - you can connect with her once you get as obsessed with her stories as I have.)

So What Should You Do Now?

Well, you can check out Intisar's writing in a short story called the Bone Knife, which is free on Amazon and basically on every online retailer, I think.

You could read Thorn which is an excellent fairytale retelling. Surprising and refreshing, it's based on the Goose Girl - which I didn't know much about before reading this one.

  

Or, you could read Sunbolt! 

 

It's a YA fantasy novella, and it's maybe my favourite novella ever. The plot keeps moving, the characters are intriguing and everything that happens is kind of unexpected. In addition, Memories of Ash is the sequel, and it's going to be released on the 30th May. According to the author it's going to be quite a bit longer than Sunbolt, so you can probably see why I'm super excited to read it. (Also, aren't the covers pretty?)

How's Inspired Indies for a new feature, you guys? Are you interested in indie books? Do you have any recommendations for me?

Nanette O'Hare is an unassuming teen who has played the role of dutiful daughter, hardworking student, and star athlete for as long as she can remember. But when a beloved teacher gives her his worn copy of The Bugglegum Reaper--a mysterious, out-of-print cult classic--the rebel within Nanette awakens. As she befriends the reclusive author, falls in love with a young troubled poet, and attempts to insert her true self into the world with wild abandon, Nanette learns the hard way that rebellion sometimes comes at a high price.  Summary from Goodreads ✱ Pages: 272 (hardcover) ✱ Publication date: 31 May 2016 ✱ Provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review ✱ Amazon UK | Amazon US

This was my first Matthew Quick book! I read an excerpt of the first few chapters two or three months back, and I was already hooked, so you can imagine how super excited I was to receive and ARC for this one!

My Rambling "This is Why I Love It" Review

You probably already got the basic message: I really loved Every Exquisite Thing. It's one of those books I just couldn't put down. The plot actually surprised me and things took a surprisingly serious turn but that made me love this story even more. I really don't want to go into the specifics because I fear that would take away from your reading experience! Suffice it to say that this story handles serious topics in a way that makes you think. It really fits this story, and I much prefer that to, say, making something horrible happen because it's emotive and will make the reader cry (which is also cool and necessary [yes, I'm looking at you, All the Bright Places] but I don't always want that, you know?)

My favourite thing about Every Exquisite Thing might be that it touches upon some really important topics: mental health and therapy, how we live our lives, and - as a kind of central theme - literature and stories and their profound effect on us. I highlighted so many passages of this book that I can't even pick favourites to share with you. I'm pretty sure I'll be rereading this as soon as I can manage it.

A book for the quiet rebels among us who don't want to go to prom, who excel at things they don't really enjoy, who get tired of doing what's expected just because other people tell them it's for the best, Every Exquisite Thing surprised me in the best way possible. It is refreshing, compelling, and honest: exactly what you want from good Young Adult literature.

Verdict: SO GOOD. Read it!

Have you read Matthew Quick before? And I'm always curious about this: which cover do you prefer? Keep reading my lovelies!

As with everything in life recently, I'm a tiny bit late with my Conversations post, but I couldn't bear to miss this topic, so here I am, a day late!

As always you can check out the Conversation meme over at Corralling Books!

In May, Conversations touches upon Blogging Habits, and  today's question is:

What are the essential things the blogs you follow have to have?

✱ An easy way to follow the blog. I really appreciate having different ways to follow a specific blog, and if I really like it, I'll probably subscribe on Bloglovin', by email, and by Google+. I'm a bit weird that way... But at the end of the day, everyone has different preferences on how to follow, so I think it's pretty important to have different options available. ✱ Different kinds of content and willingness to try new things.  I like book reviews, I like discussion posts, I like memes - any mix of those is cool by me. I don't require anything to be really different or set apart from other blogs, but I appreciate personal touches. I like getting to know a blogger a little bit through their blog posts. So, I like bloggers to post the kind of content they want, to write in their own voice (especially if they're funny without acknowledging it or weird while owning it), to sometimes have unpopular opinions, to try new things. If you do what you want I'll probably like it.  ✱ I like bloggers who comment back (and are nice people!) I suppose we all do, really, because it's a nice thing to do, right? But it goes a bit further than that. I love good comments. You know, those thoughtful ones that make you really happy? (basically every comment I've ever gotten on this little blog which are usually the highlight of my day). The thing is, those kinds of comments make me happy even when I see them on someone else's blog. And I'll tell you a secret. If I see a really nice comment on someone else's blog, I tend to look up the commenter and their blog, and follow them. Why? Because they're nice. That's all.

Tell me about your preferences! What do you *need* a blog to have before you follow it? What draws you in?

You are in luck, my little narwhal friends. Not because I'm talking about Camp NaNoWriMo again, but rather because Camp is over - has been for just about two weeks, so I'm talking about writing a little less. (You know, until July when all of this starts over again.) ALSO you're lucky (or not, depending on your point of view) because I'm BACK!  So, today's agenda looks something like this: Sorry I've been away! Why Camp is awesome Not editing is the worst and the best Finally diving back into the draft! My new project...

I'm home!

My BFF was here for a visit and she kept me away from most electronic devices so I've been absent on here, on twitter, on.. well. everything. (Notice how neatly I'm blaming it on someone else though?) We had a lovely time (and we saw my sister's baby bump!) and now I'm going to get back to a relatively normal blogging schedule! Prepare yourself for a week's worth of Annika-spam on your blog... :)

So yes, I'm sorry I was away! I'll make it up to you lovelies.

Now onto the Camp NaNo stuff:

Camp is kind of actually like camp.

I was so lucky to be in an awesome cabin for the duration of April. It really made the experience worth it. Everyone was so supportive and wonderful and actively participating. It's such an amazing thing to find like-minded people! It's why this actually happened:

So thank you, all my Headless Chicken/Dragon friends, and everyone who's been so lovely here on the blog and on twitter ❤

#NotEditing

The only reason I actually made it to 50k in April was that I stopped editing. If I knew I had some changes to make to an earlier chapter I'd write a small paragraph about it, and start it with something along the lines of "Yo, IDIOT. You forgot to introduce this character three chapters ago. EDIT nowwww." And then I'd forget all about it and keep going on with the story. It is such a freeing feeling! Even if you're not planning on doing NaNo, you should try it.

Getting to the actual work

Editing is so hard. I put my draft away for two weeks, and I've tried not to even think about it. (I started drafting a new story instead which is going nicely!) but now that I've forgotten about 90% of what I wrote during NaNo. I'm ready to jump back in. I think.

Send help! Or coffee.

I started a new thing. Again....

My new project doesn't have a title yet (gasp!) but let me pitch it to you in case you're interested. So far I've got a young burglar trying to find a way to get her family out of a plague-ridden city, a spy on a mission to find his sister who disappeared years before, and a gateway between two different worlds. So I'm back on YA fantasy territory which is where I basically want to live. So yay!

Are you writing? Tell me about your WIP, or if you're planning to do Camp NaNo in July!
Also, have you seen TrishaJenn's Wednesday Writing Prompts? Because they're pretty awesome, and if you're up for it we should take part! The prompt posted last Wednesday was "Never underestimate the lives of old men sitting on park benches."

Everyone knows the legends about the cursed girl--Isabel, the one the señoras whisper about. They say she has green skin and grass for hair, and she feeds on the poisonous plants that fill her family’s Caribbean island garden. Some say she can grant wishes; some say her touch can kill. Seventeen-year-old Lucas lives on the mainland most of the year but spends summers with his hotel-developer father in Puerto Rico. He’s grown up hearing stories about the cursed girl, and he wants to believe in Isabel and her magic. When letters from Isabel begin mysteriously appearing in his room the same day his new girlfriend disappears, Lucas turns to Isabel for answers--and finds himself lured into her strange and enchanted world. But time is running out for the girl filled with poison, and the more entangled Lucas becomes with Isabel, the less certain he is of escaping with his own life.  Summary from Goodreads. ✱ Pages: 288 (hardcover) ✱ Publication date: 12 April 2016 ✱ Provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review ✱ Amazon UK | Amazon US

A YA début that features magical realism? Sold.

The Setting

Maybe my favourite thing about this book: the setting was lovely. Reading this book kind of feels like being transported to Puerto Rico. It's rather wonderful, really. The descriptions are lush, and give a really nice picture of what life is like for our characters. The writing is enjoyable and works for this story really well.

The Characters

This is where my opinions get a bit mixed. Isabel - the girl filled with poison - is an enigma. I like those. She kept me reading - I had to find out more about her. She is interesting, and her circumstances just make you wonder, make you want to know everything. But the protagonist, Lucas... I guess I didn't find him all that likeable? Which is fair enough, and actually might just mean that he's quite a realistic portrayal of a teenage boy. I just couldn't quite bring myself to care about him. Potentially because he sometimes seems like he doesn't care about things.

The Mystery and the Plot

Isabel may be the first mystery in the story, but there is also another pretty important one: girls are disappearing. This storyline works well enough to drive the plot, but overall it ended up being a bit confusing. I wanted something slightly more from the plot because there was so much potential in the premise of the cursed girl. On the other hand the magical realism is a cool part of the story.

Overall, I'm glad to have read A Fierce and Subtle Poison but I'd be lying if I said I didn't have a few problems with it.

An interesting feat of magical realism with a pretty intriguing plot, wonderful descriptions, and characters that will keep you turning the pages to find out what happens to them (even if you're not overly fond of Lucas).

Have you read A Fierce and Subtle Poison? Do you enjoy magical realism?

Why Do You Read?

When I set out to write this post, I thought this topic would be pretty simple. Why do you read? Turns out... Well, it's not. Maybe it shouldn't be so surprising? What do you think?

The Origins of Little Reader Annika {This is basically the superhero origin story here, I guess?} Long, long ago I lived in a pretty chaotic household when I was a kid - reading just so happened to be something I could do when the kids (as in, my younger sisters) were asleep or busy with homework, and it was something I could do for me. Pretty much the only thing. I was that quiet, shy girl who never spoke in class so it seems I was fated for this bookish life, maybe? Starting Uni {Finding myself? Cliché subheadings abound today, guys...} You know how it's supposed to be so intense and everything's new and wonderful and stressful when you start university? Because of all that (and because I was still recuperating from a long-time health condition) I didn't really think about reading too much. I just did reading for my course - articles and textbooks. And then I slowly realised that I was really unhappy. And it wasn't because I didn't like my course. It was just that I wasn't reading at all, and I didn't have any time for myself because I felt the pressure to go out at night and spend time with people I didn't really care about [BFF - if you're reading this, I totally didn't hate spending time with you. Maybe because we basically never went clubbing. I love you.] So I got back to reading. Old favourites, like Maugham's the Razor's Edge, Pride and Prejudice. All the fun stuff. It was like, getting a part of my identity back? Trying on an old jumper and seeing it fit just as well as it always did, and that actually it was even more comfortable than it was a few years back. That kind of feeling.  Why Do I Keep Reading? {Learn from your mistakes...Or at least try to} I'm really good at making the same mistakes again and again ad infinitum. [I am the queen of finishing assignments an hour before the deadline. It's the worst habit ever] but I've kept from breaking my habit of reading. I don't think a week goes by where I don't read at least a book or two. The thing is, it keeps me happy. It makes me believe in humanity, and morality, and kindness and an assortment of other wonderful things (like dragons!).  Reading helps me process things that go on in my over-active mind, and lets me seem like a relatively normal person on the outside. It keeps me sane. Pretty important things, really.

 

That's enough of me rambling on and on. Tell me about you! What made you a reader, and why do you keep going? What's the best thing about reading for you?