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  • Review: THE RULES FOR DISAPPEARING by Ashley Elston

    Review: THE RULES FOR DISAPPEARING by Ashley Elston

    The Rules for Disappearing by Ashley Elston
    Published: Disney-Hyperion (May 14th, 2013)
    Reading Level: Young Adult
    Hardcover: 320 pages
    Series: The Rules for Disappearing, #1
    Rating: 4 of 5 stars
    Summary:
    She’s been six different people in six different places: Madeline in Ohio, Isabelle in Missouri, Olivia in Kentucky.. But now that she’s been transplanted to rural Louisiana, she has decided that this fake identity will be her last.

    Witness Protection has taken nearly everything from her. But for now, they’ve given her a new name, Megan Rose Jones, and a horrible hair color. For the past eight months, Meg has begged her father to answer one question: What on earth did he do – or see – that landed them in this god-awful mess? Meg has just about had it with all the Suits’ rules — and her dad’s silence. If he won’t help, it’s time she got some answers for herself.

    But Meg isn’t counting on Ethan Landry, an adorable Louisiana farm boy who’s too smart for his own good. He knows Meg is hiding something big. And it just might get both of them killed. As they embark on a perilous journey to free her family once and for all, Meg discovers that there’s only one rule that really matters — survival.

    Review:


    I loved that The Rules for Disappearing was something that I had never seen in a story. A family is forced to give up their identities and move around constantly due to some secret thing her dad did or knows.

    In this story we meet Meg, who has just moved into a new town with her family and must, again, get used to being a new person. It seems that they have to end up moving a lot so it's getting harder to keep the facts straight about their"lives". And she worries about her little sister's ability to do this over and over.

    Meg tries to distance herself from all people because she knows that in the end, she will have to leave them just like every other time. But she never expected to meet someone like Ethan, a popular guy who seems to not fully believe her back story. He keeps pointing out these inconsistancies and it makes Meg nervous that he will find out her secret.

    I really found myself enjoying each character we meet in this story. They were very well developed and fun to get to know.

    Although there is romance in this story, there's also a ton of mystery surrounding what happened. I was a bit surprised to find out what led to their family being in the Witness Protection Program. I was really glad to see that this series is continuing. A blurb hasn't been released yet but I'll be waiting to see what happens next!

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  • Review: NANTUCKET BLUE by Leila Howland

    Review: NANTUCKET BLUE by Leila Howland

    Nantucket Blue by Leila Howland
    Published: Disney Hyperion (May 7th, 2013)
    Reading Level: Young Adult
    Hardcover: 304 pages
    Rating: 5 of 5 stars
    Summary:
    For Cricket Thompson, a summer like this one will change everything. A summer spent on Nantucket with her best friend, Jules Clayton, and the indomitable Clayton family. A summer when she’ll make the almost unattainable Jay Logan hers. A summer to surpass all dreams.

    Some of this turns out to be true. Some of it doesn’t.

    When Jules and her family suffer a devastating tragedy that forces the girls apart, Jules becomes a stranger whom Cricket wonders whether she ever really knew. And instead of lying on the beach working on her caramel-colored tan, Cricket is making beds and cleaning bathrooms to support herself in paradise for the summer.

    But it’s the things Cricket hadn’t counted on--most of all, falling hard for someone who should be completely off-limits--that turn her dreams into an exhilarating, bittersweet reality.

    A beautiful future is within her grasp, and Cricket must find the grace to embrace it. If she does, her life could be the perfect shade of Nantucket blue.

    Review:


    This was such a fantastic story for so many reasons! Nantucket Blue really made me want to find a place just like Nantucket where I could be like Cricket and go exploring for the summer.

    Cricket was wonderful. She was very much the typical teen but she grew so much during this story. In the beginning we learn that Cricket spends a lot of time with her best friend Jules and her family. She's sort of a permanent fixture in their lives, but not in a bad way. It's just the way things were. Then the Clayton family goes through a horrible loss and things change quickly.

    Cricket had plans to spend the summer with Jules and her family in Nantucket. After the tragedy, Jules makes it clear that she doesn't want Cricket around. There were some times when I wanted Cricket to stand up for herself with Jules. Yes, Jules had a big reason to be sad but she didn't need to be so mean and heartless. I was happy to see that, after a while, Cricket is able to break free of that dependency and try things on her own.

    Since Cricket doesn't really want to go home, she decides that she will still spend the summer there but she has to find a job. She works for a hotel and ends up making some great friends. As the story goes on, I really felt that Cricket was doing what was best for her. This summer journey was what she needed.

    This isn't a book full of romance but I was very surprised at where the romance ended up being. It was very cute and sweet. I really love books like this. I'm a huge romance fan but this book carried enough of a plot that I didn't miss it not being there in the beginning. I highly recommend this book if you are looking for a feel-good summer book!

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