*REVIEW* Rules for 50/50 Chances

Released today: Rules for 50/50 Chances by Kate McGovern...

Synopsis:
Seventeen-year-old Rose Levenson has a decision to make: Does she want to know how she’s going to die? Because when Rose turns eighteen, she can take the test that will tell her if she carries the genetic mutation for Huntington’s disease, the degenerative condition that is slowly killing her mother. With a fifty-fifty shot at inheriting her family’s genetic curse, Rose is skeptical about pursuing anything that presumes she’ll live to be a healthy adult—including going to ballet school and the possibility of falling in love. But when she meets a boy from a similarly flawed genetic pool, and gets an audition for a dance scholarship in California, Rose begins to question her carefully-laid rules.

I really wanted to love Rules for 50/50 Chances and there were times where I thought it was possible but unfortunately, it just ended up being okay for me. There are some great things about it but the ending left me feeling flat as a reader even if I thought the ending was positive for the main character. 

Rules for 50/50 Chances introduces us to Rose, a teenage girl watching her mom deteriorate from Huntington's Disease. In addition to watching her mom die a slow and debilitating death, the real kicker for Rose is that she has a 50/50 chance of inheriting this disease from her mother. Geneticists do not allow anyone to take the test for Huntington's until they are at least 18 years old, though it's recommended to wait much longer than that since symptoms often do not occur until the person is well into their thirties. Rose doesn't think she can live with the uncertainty hanging over her head and decides she has to know her Huntington's status before making her future life choices. Enter Caleb, a cute and sweet boy who has her challenging all her beliefs about avoiding love and falling for someone since love and life are so unpredictable. Loss is the only thing that Rose really believes in...

Readers are taken on Rose's journey as she waits to learn the truth about her future. Along the way, Rose is forced to consider the rules she has set for herself, and the truth about where she really wants her life to lead her next. 

As I stated above, I really wanted to love this one but I think the ending kind of killed it for me. 

SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!!! (DON'T READ IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK!)

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Rose deciding at the VERY end to not find out her test results killed me. While I cannot imagine how I would feel or act placed in that circumstance, as a reader who has been following along her story, it's anticlimatic to realize that I will NEVER know if Rose will develop Huntington's or not. As a reader, that SUCKS. It may very well have been the best choice for Rose but for me? Bah, humbug!

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END OF SPOILER!!!!!!

I really cannot imagine how I would feel if I were in Rose's shoes... to live with that kind of uncertainty hanging over you has to alter how you react and live in the world. And to watch your mom go through that? Heartbreaking! This book definitely has the potential to create the feels. Rose is a wee bit annoying at times but again, it's hard to imagine being in her place. All in all, it's worth a read. Some people have loved it... I'm more in-like. And that's okay.

                             

*REVIEW* For the Record

Released today: For the Record by Charlotte Huang...

Synopsis:
Chelsea thought she knew what being a rock star was like . . . until she became one. After losing a TV talent show, she slid back into small-town anonymity. But one phone call changed everything 
 
Now she’s the lead singer of the band Melbourne, performing in sold-out clubs every night and living on a bus with three gorgeous and talented guys. The bummer is that the band barely tolerates her. And when teen hearthrob Lucas Rivers take an interest in her, Chelsea is suddenly famous, bringing Melbourne to the next level—not that they’re happy about that. Her feelings for Beckett, Melbourne’s bassist, are making life even more complicated.
 
Chelsea only has the summer tour to make the band—and their fans—love her. If she doesn’t, she’ll be back in Michigan for senior year, dying a slow death. The paparazzi, the haters, the grueling schedule... Chelsea believed she could handle it. But what if she can’t?

For the Record is one of those books that completely ensnares you... once I started reading it, I was powerless to put it down! Pesky sleep interrupted me briefly but I seriously inhaled this book in a day. And I have a toddler at home! Thank the fates I read this during summer break while off of work or I would have been having to sneak reading this one under my desk!

For the Record introduces us to Chelsea, a teenage girl fresh off a reality singing competition. Chelsea gets the opportunity of a lifetime to replace the lead singer in an established band. Chelsea knows that this tour has to be perfect... her future and career are riding on it. The only problem is that not all of her new bandmates are happy with her addition to the crew. This becomes more of an issue when Chelsea captures the eye of one of the biggest teen actors of the moment and their tour becomes a bit of a circus... and there's also the issue of the sparks Chelsea thinks she feels with one of the guys in the band... sparks expressly forbidden. Travel around the country with the likeable Melbourne in this fantastic and addictive tale by Charlotte Huang.

I love this book!!!! Like I said above, I couldn't put it down for the life of me. I was really, really sad to see it end and that's the trademark of a fantastic book. I'd really love to see Huang write a sequel.

*REVIEW* The Lies About Truth

Released today: The Lies About Truth by Courtney Stevens...

Synopsis:
Sadie Kingston, is a girl living in the aftermath. A year after surviving a car accident that killed her friend Trent and left her body and face scarred, she can’t move forward. The only person who seems to understand her is Trent’s brother, Max.

As Sadie begins to fall for Max, she's unsure if she is truly healed enough to be with him — even if Max is able to look at her scars and not shy away. But when the truth about the accident and subsequent events comes to light, Sadie has to decide if she can embrace the future or if she'll always be trapped in the past.

I wasn't over the moon excited to read this one but boy, am I glad that I did! The Lies About Truth is a wonderful story about grief, forgiveness, moving on, learning to live with emotional and physical scars, and healing. It's human nature and left me feeling hopeful.

The Lies About Truth introduces us to Sadie, a girl who survived a horrendous car accident that took her friend's life. Sadie is horribly scarred and struggles to accept her new physical reality... helping her with this is her newfound relationship with Max, the brother of the friend she lost. 

Sadie struggles not only with the physical recovery but with the emotional one as well. Losing Trent has started a domino effect that damages the friendships she has always been able to count on. Will Sadie be able to forgive those closest to her and herself for everything that has led to them being where they are now? Can you ever really turn back the clock and regain who you once were? Find out in this uplifting and heart tugging tale by Courtney Stevens.

I really did enjoy this one. Sadie is damaged but relatable... she's not one of those damaged souls that you end up annoyed with, thinking "okay, you really need to move on now." Sadie takes you on her journey with her and you really feel her emotions and pain and that makes it so easy to root for her. This is a really great story about forgiveness, friendship and loss. Highly recommend.