Along For The Ride

Along for the Ride
by Sarah Dessen
Rating: So, so
Difficulty: Normal
Pages: 383

Synopsis
It's been so long since Auden slept at night. Ever since her parents' divorce—or since the fighting started. Now she has the chance to spend a carefree summer with her dad and his new family in the charming beach town where they live.

A job in a clothes boutique introduces Auden to the world of girls: their talk, their friendship, their crushes. She missed out on all that, too busy being the perfect daughter to her demanding mother. Then she meets Eli, an intriguing loner and a fellow insomniac who becomes her guide to the nocturnal world of the town. Together they embark on parallel quests: for Auden, to experience the carefree teenage life she's been denied; for Eli, to come to terms with the guilt he feels for the death of a friend.


Review
I know what you are sayong... “Along for the Ride is ‘so so’!! Are you insane!!!??” Yes, quite possibly I might be insane but at least I admit it. Really, this wasn’t Sarah’s best work and I extremely, gut wrenchingly sorry to say it! I looked around on other blogs to see if I was the only one who thought it wasn’t that extraordinary and it just so happens that after I starred it only 3 stars on Goodreads, I immediately got a comment agreeing with me. Maybe it was just them or not… I don’t know you tell me!

Let’s talk about characters…The good- Eli is great, he’s so mysterious and sad that you can’t help but love him and want to no more about him. Except for the fact that he’s really vague when it comes to his feeling for Auden, he’s a great character. Auden is another one of those, cold-girls-who-never-went-out-in-high-school-and-always-worried-about-school-and-never-had-a-life kind of characters. I really think it’s getting quite old with that whole thing! I do love her name though and her dad’s weird obsession with strange and unique names. Her newborn sister’s name is Thisbe and which catches my eyes.

Better then Auden and her plain jane-ness is the town of Colby, Sarah Dessen took a break from her normal, fictional town of Lakeview and took us to the cost where the sun is warm and everyone is just trying to have fun. I can almost imagine the streets of Colby and the shops that take their place in Eli and Auden’s quest! If there’s on thing that Mrs. Dessen got right in this book, it’s the scenery description!
Auden’s mom is another thing that really ticked me off- her cold and lifeless outer shell and superior attitude rubbed me in all the wrong places, usually she would be the “villain” character in a novel but really she was just really annoying. Maggie on the other hand suorised me in all sorts of was, just like she surprised Auden in the book, I really didn’t imagine her to be smart and a lover of bmx riding, it was a pleasant and interesting surprise!

Overall it was the characters that really made the book so if you think the strong points I mentioned out weighed the low points, go ahead and go buy it! Sarah Dessen is really all about how the story affects YOU, so go find out if you actually liked it and if you did then maybe you would like to pint out a few things I missed and if you agree then let me know how you feel!

Someone Like You

Someone Like You
by Sarah Dessen
Rating: Great
Difficulty: Normal
Pages: 281



Synopsis

Halley has always followed in the wake of her best friend, Scarlett. But when Scarlett learns that her boyfriend has been killed in a motorcycle accident, and that she's carrying his baby, she's devastated. For the first time ever, Scarlett really needs Halley. Though their friendship may be tested by the strain, like a true friendship, it will endure.


Review

So this book is mainly a friendship novel. It's about being for someone when they really need you and knowing what right and wrong is. I love Halley, she is the epitome of a great friend. When Scarlett finds out that her boyfriend dies, she comes running and when she also finds out that she is carrying his baby, Halley is right there with her. This is a strong novel with many key facts and lessons in it. Halley meets Macon and her whole life seems to change, suddenly she is in this crazy relationship with this fun freesprited guy but after a while the shimmer wears off and the pressure to get physical becomes to much for her. The ending is really great and i thinks it's very impowering for young girls out there. It basically says that no matter what, you have your friends and your family and thats what is really important in life.

This Lullaby

This Lullaby
by Sarah Dessen
Rating: Incredible
Difficulty: Normal
Pages:345





Synopsis

When it comes to relationships, Remy doesnat mess around. After all, sheas learned all there is to know from her mother, whoas currently working on husband number five. But there is something about Dexter that seems to defy all of Remy's rules. He certainly doesnat "seem" like Mr. Right. For some reason, however, Remy just can't seem to break up with him.Could it be that Remy's romantic rules to live by don't apply anymore?

Review

So i cannot believe how cgood this book actually was! The characters are amazing and Dexter is so incerdibly cute! Sarah Dessen popped out another excellent book about a girl named Remy who is extremely cold and cynical about relationships. Her mother, who is working on huband number five, seems to be the root of all her problems and is definitly the reason why she's become so heartless. But it's not because her mom is mean or sadistic about love because in all actuallity Barbara is one of the only one's in the story who actually believes in it, but it's because Remy figures that its better not to love at all instead of trying. When she meets Dexter, a clumsy, messy, disorganized musician like her long absent father, she just can't seem to let him go. But oh who could! Dexter is the best part of the story especially when he tell his friends "Yeah, she loves me." even though Remy is clearing trying to deny it. At first she wonders how she ever got into this situation and then she soon learns that maybe love isnt so bad after all! I really love this book and it is one of Sarah Dessen best! Go out and buy it as soon as possible!

The Truth About Forever

The Truth About Forever

by Sarah Dessen

Rating: Good

Difficulty: Normal

Pages:374

Synopsis

A long hot summer- that's what sixteen year old Macy Queen has to look forward to. Her boyfriend, Jason, is going away to Brain Camp. She's stuck with a dull-as-dishwasher job at the library. And all of her free time promises to be spent studying for the SATs or grieving silently with her mother over her father's death.

But everything changes when Macy is carrolled into helping out at another one of her mom's open house events, and she meets the chaotic Wish Catering crew. Before long Macy ditches her library job and joins up with the Wish gang: big hearted Delia; quiet, introspective Monica; and fun-loving, fashion-conscious Kristy. But best of all there's Wes- who gets Macy to look at life in a whole new way...

Review

So in honor of Sarah's new book Along for the Ride, i decided to read this wonderful book. Of course who doesn't love a good Dessen book but this book is especially great. It's the familiar story of a young girl bored with her life and looking for some excitement without knowing she's looking at all. Macy Queen, is just that girl, except around her town she's known by a different name- the girl who watched her father die. I don't even know how to begin to tell you how important this is to the story, the whole concept of just getting up and doing, revolves around that one moment she was one minute too late to save him. When her boring boring boring! boyfriend leaves to some smart kids camp, she stuck witha dead end job and nothing to do during a perfectly good summer. When she meets the Wish Catering crew she gets a little dose of healthy chaos and her steadily planned life is thrown into a beautiful spiral of fun, friends and flirting. Wes-ahhh Wes... how dreamy is he? Not only is he artistic and free-spirited but he's also deep and thoughtful. Through out the whole book Macy is having trouble choosing between her safe dull lifestyle and her new exciting adventure. Like i said its the ultimate story of young girl bored with life but in this book the girl finds a little light in the dull gray exsistence and along the way she finds love and herself!

Read it!!!

Love, Tina

Dreamland

Dreamland

by Sarah Dessen

Rating: Incredible

Difficulty: Normal

Pages: 250

Synopsis

Ever since she started going out with Rogerson Biscoe, Caitlin seems to have fallen into a semiconscious dreamland where nothing is quite real. Rogerson is different from anyone Caitlin has ever known. He's magnetic. He's compelling. He's dangerous. Being with him makes Caitlin forget about everything else- her missing sister, her withdrawn mother, her lackluster life. But what happens when being with Rogerson becomes a larger problem then being without him?

Review

So i can't help but stress to you how absolutely amazing this book is! Not only is Rogerson Biscoe one of the most terrifically written characters in writing history (to me) but this story is also very real. Now what i mean by real is that it addresses a large problem occurring today among many teenage girls- abuse. Caitlin is the less "outstanding daughter," her grades aren't perfect, she doesn't have a specific talent and she's always hidden in the shadow of her older more phenomenal sister, Cassie. That is until she meets Rogerson. He is the epitome of everything Cassie would never have- mysterious, brilliant, charming and soon controlling, terrifying and abusive. At first she is grateful for his unfamiliar ways but as the latter traits begin to appear, Caitlin is caught up in a fight for her identity and her life. The characters in this book are the best i know- Sarah Dessen perfectly captures the personalities of everyday people with a splash of a little eccentricism. It doesn't take you long to fall in love with these characters- especially Rogerson. I was shocked and appalled that someone so amazing could be so evil and it really showed me how you can never really know someone completely. Caitlin learns this and plenty other lessons in Dreamland and the ultimate one is finding herself. Finding the niche where she belongs in her own personal life. It's a story of courageous survival, getting to know one's self, and appreciating what you have. This is the absolute must read!