mororke's reviews
733 reviews

I honestly don’t know where to begin. This book was an emotional roller coaster, jerking me through highs and lows and ending beautifully.

Jax, trying to live outside his brothers’ shadows, away from their fame and fanatics ends up shipped to a farm in Idaho to stay with his Aunt Betty.

Sivan, tragic loss, followed by crappy foster homes, and finally placed on a farm in Idaho, with you guessed it, Jax’s Aunt Betty.

While predictable throughout the book, I truly enjoyed the story and the dialogue. From holding my sides from laughing to gripping a box of tissues with tears streaming down my face, this book did what I love for books to do, it gripped my emotions. I was sucked in from the first chapter and couldn’t put it down.

I’m rating the story as four stars because from the beginning it was pretty easy to tell where the story was headed. Overall, I’ll probably read this book again when I need to be put through the emotional gamut, and will be picking up a physical copy for myself.

Read all of my reviews at the-pink-moose.com

I really want to make sure that I don’t spoil any parts of the book, so I’ll do my best to be a bit vague.

The book is about Sam, who has been in trouble in the past, but with a new city is trying to turn over a new leaf. While trying to get into the “in crowd” she learns a lot about herself, her friends, and the other cultures around her.

Sam, as a character is a great one. While some of her actions lead to issues, she works hard to not only understand her different relationships better, but also tries to be a better person and help those around her become better versions of themselves as well.

The story is well written with a few plot twists I wasn’t expecting. The only reason I didn’t give it five moose tracks is from a couple of plot jumps and fall backs. In one part, she’s having lunch and it states she has her food and is picking out the tomatoes. In the next chapter, same lunch, it says she’s gets back to the table as the food is being delivered.

Overall, I highly recommend Amish Guys Don’t Call. It’s a fast read, and a cute story that hits on some major themes for teenagers. From trying to fit in, to fighting to stand out, I feel like most readers will identify with the elements of the story, pulling them further into the book.

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After a few incidents force Leo’s family to move to a new neighborhood, and Leo discovers running. Leo’s story doesn’t belong to him alone. Caleb and Leo are brothers, complete opposites but still connected. Caleb, two years older, and on the spectrum, “among other things,” looks up to Leo and tries to compare himself to Leo’s achievements. Leo, without realizing it, looks up to Caleb too.

Leo begins running when Caleb becomes physically abusive, never knowing what will set him off, Leo keeps his running shoes near the door, and takes off anytime Caleb comes after him. This leads Leo to joining the Cross Country track team at his new school, and helps Leo, and Caleb, to cope with things they didn’t know were bothering them.

The way Running Full Tilt is written is easy to read, and quick to move through. While I tend to read quickly, I felt like this book blew past, much like Leo in his races. The story never falls into a lull and it’s easy to get caught up in “just one more chapter.” I wasn’t expecting the end of the book, and thought that things would end differently for Leo and his family. That being said, I think that I was hoping for a traditional happy ending, and while it ends on a high note, the journey there will feel like a roller coaster.

Leo and Caleb are my favorite characters, as they should be since they are the main characters of the book. I wish that there was more information about Caleb, being on the spectrum, and then some, is very vague and made it seem like his issues weren’t well researched, and just thrown into a lump category with what seemed to be a lot of side effects.

Leo is pretty well developed, though instead of being honest about Caleb’s fighting, Leo sweeps it under the rug. I feel like if Leo had been honest perhaps Caleb could have received the medical attention he needed.

Leo’s parents come off as selfish and not realizing what’s actually happening in their house. While Leo’s dad did try to make a point when Caleb left visible marks on Leo, the rest of his behavior was ignored.

Overall, it’s a great story, with a dysfunctional family, and a high speed ending. I’m not a sports person, and while a lot of the story focuses on running, it isn’t the entire story, and doesn’t detract from the rest of the book, or Leo’s journey throughout.

I began this book knowing that it probably wasn’t for me, but I moved forward anyway, I did after all, enjoy Breaking Bad.

The book started off nice enough, average college kid, can’t wait to join a fraternity and have the typical college experience. Cory quickly moves into drugs, alcohol and blowing off class. He moved from a typical college to kid to independent drug dealer fairly quickly.

The book spent so much time talking about the amount of drugs being sold, and money being made, the book may be seen as a cautionary tale, but to me it seemed to glorify drug and party cultures.

Considering that the story covers three years, it’s dreadfully slow and was difficult for me to continue with. Cory didn’t even make an effort at school. Wouldn’t he have been put on academic probation or something for his lack of effort. Throughout the book he seemed to carry on with his illegal lifestyle with no thought of the circumstances that most kids would face. Did his parents never see his grades, or simply not care that he was throwing their money away? Even when he was home on break, it only talked about his high school friends and not if his parents’ noticed how different he was than when he left.

Between pages and pages of drug descriptions, plot holes, and the “no problem” attitude at the end of the book, it left me feeling disappointed and upset that I worked so hard to finish the book where the kid in the middle of it all didn’t have to take any responsibility for his actions.

My opinion is pass on this one and try another if you want a story where characters take responsibility for their actions or at least grow and develop throughout the story. I rated it two stars simply because I did finish the book, so it had to have some decent parts.

Read all of my reviews at my website the-pink-moose.com

I don’t even know where to begin. I hate reviews with spoilers so I’m going to do my best to avoid any here. I’ve read quite a few books this year and just began reading ARCs, this is my third and by far my favorite.

I guess the best place to begin is the beginning. Rory Capers, full of unexplained teenage angst, trying to figure out emotions that the reader can’t even begin to understand. Rory. Whose dad is a cop and doesn’t know that his daughter is a vandal. Rory. Who is denying a very real issue.

Hayes. Alcoholic, trying to work the AA system but forgetting that you can’t be by yourself forever. Hayes. Scratching at the surface of Rory’s secrets. Hayes. Wiggling into parts of Rory’s life that she’s not ready to let people into. Hayes. That understands for some people it just takes time.

I started this book in the early afternoon knowing I wouldn’t have a ton of time to read it before life kicked into gear. I picked it back up after every one went to bed and finished it in just under four hours. The book surprised me. While parts are a corny teen romance there is so much more emotion hidden within the pages. Denial. Grief. Loss. Rage. I found myself heartbroken. When Rory discovers her dad’s secret I was devastated when the truth of the story was revealed. Thinking back all the signs are there, I just didn’t want to see them myself. I, like Rory, wanted a nicely wrapped story with a happily ever after.

Once the secret was revealed I didn’t feel betrayed as one might expect. I felt relieved. It was a mix of emotions and an overwhelming sense of relief once you discover the secret for yourself. Relief that Rory wasn’t simply angry because of her father’s attitude and being able to see his side of the story as well really brought the story together for me.

A mix of flirting, sadness, laughing and anger throughout the book made the characters likable and relatable. Getting to know the characters that seemed like background pieces through the first of the book made me enjoy the story even more.

Love and Vandalism is a story about the human condition. Emotions we struggle to understand in the real world can almost laughably be under explained in a book but this book makes them feel real. The passion and rage that Rory feels is well described without over using “rage” and “angry”. The emotional descriptions are subtle and easily missed if you’re not paying close attention.

The only thing I have left to say about this book is that I loved it. Every word was written with care to make sure that the reader is not overwhelmed by the anger and sticks with the story long enough to learn the cause. I love the references to Narnia, such a nostalgic part of my childhood and waiting for Aslan to come save me from some non-catastrophe in my child’s heart. The over all development of the storyline had me saying “one more chapter” until the very end. A well deserved five stars.

To read all of my reviews, check out my website the-pink-moose.com

This is the first book I've read by Lena North. I enjoy her writing style and like that things are straight-forward with small bits of foreshadowing in each chapter.

By chapter three I was ready to put this book down, and move to another I may have liked more. Jinx, the main character, is absolutely appalling. As a very intelligent introvert, I hated that she was constantly condescending, thought every one wanted a piece of her, and never gave anyone a chance.

I stuck with the story and am overjoyed that I did. Rarely does a character grow and develop so quickly, but also quietly. I haven't read the first book in the series, but didn't feel lost picking up this book. If Jinx was the same way in the first book, I would have never picked up this book and would have missed this amazing transformation.

Overall I immensely enjoyed the book and will be looking for Wilder and the rest of the series. I want to learn about each of these interesting characters and the world they live in.

Read all of my reviews at the-pink-moose.com.

When I began Street Song I honestly rolled my eyes at Ryan’s character. Former star who lost it all, too many parties and too many drugs. A wash out. An addict. I personally prefer “stars” who don’t get addicted to everything, but it helped get the story going.

When Ryan met Toni, I rolled my eyes as well. Oh yay, a love story! That being said, I love that Toni was a no nonsense kind of girl. She had the self confidence that most girls her age lack. It made her a really enjoyable character.

As Ryan begins his journey in Belfast, I was quickly pulled into the story and kept telling myself “One more chapter and I’ll go to bed.” I finished the book instead.

While parts of the story are a bit slow, wanting to know what Ryan’s next step would be kept me turning pages. It’s a great story about hitting rock bottom to find your true self, and then working to keep that person. I do recommend the book if you want a quick, but interesting read with a little love story and a lot of talk about music.