Book Review: Need by Joelle Charbonneau

In my house, kidney donation is something to joke about.

“No one gets something for nothing. We all should know better.” Teenagers at Wisconsin's Nottawa High School are drawn deeper into a social networking site that promises to grant their every need... regardless of the consequences. Soon the site turns sinister, with simple pranks escalating to malicious crimes. The body count rises. In this chilling YA thriller, the author of the best-selling Testing trilogy examines not only the dark side of social media, but the dark side of human nature. 

  

This book is about being manipulated into doing straight up illegal and immoral things by the website, on the basis that it's anonymous and free stuff.

The main character's brother PJ or some other genetic letters for a name, needs a kidney donation eventually. Now I know about kidney donations and I don't buy that it's that serious. If he has another relapse then he'll need one. Okay, so that makes sound his kidneys are still functioning without the need of dialysis, therefore he's not at the point of "NEEDING" one. This coming from someone whose sister kidney has been at the point of failure and then it recovered. You're be surprised at how low kidney function can before you go on the donor list. If it had been the Liver then I wouldn't know anything about how senvle the need actually was. The character acts as if her brother was brink of death right at that moment. She just too desperate. He's not on the organ donation list yet.

This is a typical YA novel in that the parents are terrible and should not be allowed to have children. Okay not quite. But you know not knowing what going on with their kids and just screwing them over with lies.That being said Kaylee is unlikable.  There all unlikable characters, except the odd one or two that get screwed over before we really get to know them. Kaylee is only sympathetic next to her brother and since I didn't buy that, then none of her idiotic behaviour in the past is justifiable.  She straight up broke the law. Maybe she was meant to show people are capable of extreme acts if they can justify it to themselves but we start the book after that and she just this isolated character who is too dumb to print scene a website.

The book switches between Kaylee and someone's POV every chapter but not strict with that format. We know more than the characters, which I think it was more frustrating than tension building.

Overall, I gave this book 3 out of 5 stars for nutty cookies. The concept is interesting, though evil internet is very 80s, the execution didn't do that much for me. There's are a lot of clichés and the characters are bland extras or jerks. Though, it was easily to jump in and out of. It also takes place the Winter break after Christmas & New Year are over so if you like reading book that take place at the exact time of year you reading them, then there's still plenty of time to acquire this book for that time of year.

I got this book for Review off NetGalley and HMH Books for Young Readers.

Book Review: Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon

Bad parenting in YA is as common as Love Triangles.

Madeline Whittier is allergic to the outside world. So allergic, in fact, that she has never left the house in all of her seventeen years. But when Olly moves in next door, and wants to talk to Maddie, tiny holes start to appear in the protective bubble her mother has built around her. Olly writes his IM address on a piece of paper, shows it at her window, and suddenly, a door opens. But does Maddie dare to step outside her comfort zone?

Everything, Everything is about the thrill and heartbreak that happens when we break out of our shell to do crazy, sometimes death-defying things for love. 

Lets start by stating the above summery has a small error and things don't quite go down in that way in the book. You're be shocked and horrified (okay, it's that there's no piece of paper. Also she has left the house, but she doesn't remember that). This plot isn't very unique and the plot is almost the exact same as a film, but reverse genders and a different tone. I won't say which one for spoilers but you can probably work out if you wanted to. I also feel like I have either read/heard about another book with characters with the same disorder.

The format of this book is my favourite part of this book.We have typical pose from the point of view of the Madeline with illustrations scatter throughout the book and emails, texts and post-it notes.

The characters themselves ain't great in personality department. I kinda equal the two main characters as two traits, Madeline is books and Olly is maths. Oh, I forgot that Olly is actually Green Arrow. I don't feel like explaining that reference. Their actual interactions are good, but these characters don't stand for themselves for me and feel flat. The relationship between Madeline and her mother doesn't sit right with me, especially towards the end of the book. I would have like more resolution with them.

Overall, I give this book 3/5 stars for humuhumunukunukuāpuaʻa. This novel is not at all original and filled with clichés but it's done pretty well. It's a good light read, though I do feel it's trying to be more than that with the issues it has characters facing. Though, that could be interpreted as Yoon trying to make them more realistic. The ending is just too "perfect" for me to think of it as anything more.

I got this book off NetGalley for Review and it is being publish by Corgi Childrens on 27th August 2015.

Book Review: Adorkable by Sarra Manning

 I hate both the main characters, they're both prejudice, shallow and their judgement is always questionable.Still its a very readable book.

Jeane Smith's a blogger, a dreamer, a dare-to-dreamer, a jumble sale queen, CEO of her own lifestyle brand, and has half a million followers on Twitter.  

Michael Lee's a star of school, stage, and playing field. A golden boy in a Jack Wills hoodie.  

They have nothing in common but a pair of cheating exes. So why can't they stop making out?

I like to start out by saying that this is how Jeane Smith describes herself (in third person because that what you do on the internet)on her blog. She describles her self as "a dreamer" and "a dare-to-dreamer". This really bugs me as there the same thing, to be "a dreamer" you've got to "dare" to be one and it just adds nothing.

This is obvious YA Romance novel, so mainly about the Jeane and Michael relationships. So the characters should make the book. To be bluntly honest, before I even finish Chapter One my opinion was that they're both deserve each other as they're both arseholes. Jeane little Goth comment was really where I got my distaste of her. You know she meant to be an outcast but makes fun of other outcasts. She sort of does that a lot. She also is very much not a dork. She seems rather fake in her weirdness. I mean I just don't buy it all.

Michael is petty much the popular cliché. Likes only people who wears labels.

 Also there was no cheating exes. Basically, their girlfriend and boyfriend at the start of the novel, like each other and because frankly the starting relationships were in terrible states, they broke up and start seeing each other. The exes are both rather boring and I didn't care if they show up again. Jeane attitude as having made her ex-boyfriend is my favourite thing that made her so very unlikeable.

Oh, If you wondering, I still think they're both petty much arseholes after reading the whole book.

However, even though the main characters are completely unlikeable -Actually the only characters I like is Michael's family. How could they have gone so wrong with Michael?- This book is really readable, it like you just need to know what these idoits are going to do next.

Also there actually a few good things about this book, such as the point of view changes each chapter between Jeane and Michael which really work for this book. You also get to see how they lie to themselves straight away with conflicting versions of events.

 It also petty realistic portrayal of teenage life (once you get past Jeane is big deal on the internet and the Guardian is meant to really like her). There's sex, underage drinking and a really boring party.

So I gave this book a 3/5 stars because I did enjoy reading it. So I guess I recommend this to anyone who likes observing idiots and doesn't care if the main characters are that likeable.