Crossing the Line (Pushing the Limits #1.5)
by Katie McGarry
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary
Publisher: Harlequin TEEN
Publication date: April 1st 2013
Pages: 67 (kindle edition)
Source: own copy
Author's website | GoodReads

Lila McCormick, Echo's best friend from Pushing the Limits, first met Lincoln Turner when tragedy struck both their lives. But she never expected their surprise encounter would lead to two years of exchanging letters—or that she’d fall for the boy she’s only seen once. Their relationship is a secret, but Lila feels closer to Lincoln than anyone else. Until she finds out that he lied to her about the one thing she depended on him for the most.  

Hurting Lila is the last thing Lincoln wanted. For two years, her letters have been the only thing getting him through the day. Admitting his feelings would cross a line he’s never dared breach before. But Lincoln will do whatever it takes to fix his mistakes, earn Lila’s forgiveness—and finally win a chance to be with the girl he loves.

In a handful of hours, I'm going to head home, and the one lesson I learned from Josh's death is that life has to be lived now; the future isn't always guaranteed. I have this on shot with her, and I'm going to take it.

Katie McGarry captivated readers with her riveting and emotional Young Adult debut, Pushing the Limits. In this gripping novella, she tells the story of Lila and Lincoln, who discover that sometimes it’s worth crossing the line for love.

Most of the fans of Pushing The Limits as Echo's best friend who stuck with her even if it meant cutting her ties with other friends. When Echo lost her older brother Aires two and a half years ago, Lila mourned just as much. On that same night, Lila met Lincoln. Lincoln's brother Josh suffered the same fate as Aires, and though he seemed to control his feelings during the funeral, he actually poured his heart out to a girl he just met- Lila.

The two instantly clicked and agreed to become pen pals; talking about nothing and everything through letters sent twice a week for two and a half years. They told each other everything and trusted their secrets to one another. It was all building up to each one accepting the probability of having feelings for the other, something more than friendship. Everything was perfect until Lincoln messes everything up by withholding a tiny detail from Lila; the one thing she depended on the most.

Terrified of the thought of losing Lila and wanting so much to fix things and explain, Lincoln speeds his way to her hometown- to the address he knows by heart. After a series of events, Lincoln ends up staying the night at Lila's house, causing them to completely reassess their plans for the future and their unexpected feelings for each other.

The love between Lila and Lincoln was magical, sweet, and marginally perfect in my point of view. I despise instalove, but I'm a fan of their relationship because even though they only spent 24 hours with each other, the book clearly describes the letters sent between the two and how their relationship grew into something more than that of pen pals. Lincoln made Lila feel safe, secure, confident, and unconditionally loved, and Lila was like a miracle for Lincoln; she helped him get through his grief and problems and understood him more than anyone could. The thing that sold me was that even though they were sure that they were in love with each other, they didn't quite say 'I love you' yet and went with the simple 'like', because they both knew that they had all the time in the world to grow and love.

Katie McGarry did it again and did the impossible by packing up so much emotion into a mere 67 pages. She created two characters who I rooted for with all my heart with stories that touched my core. I usually stay away from short stories because they pull you in from the start and end just as easily. That became the case with Crossing The Line. I got so frustrated and angry when it ended because like every McGarry book that I have read, I wanted more. I wished that this wasn't a short story because I truly believe that it had the potential to be a full fledged novel. It wasn't just all about love, either. Crossing the Limits is yet another beautiful story from Katie McGarry about hope, acceptance, moving on, and breaking out of our confines. Lila and Josh's short yet sweet tale teaches us that it's okay to take chances and cross the line.

I think sometimes the things we don't like happen so we can appreciate the good. Like, can I relaly enjoy the sunrise if I didn't experience the darkness of night? Without her past, Echo would never have met Noah, and without her losing Aires, I would never have met you. So, yeah, I do mean what I said in the last letters. You are like a sunrise in my life.

THE NUB AND GIST: 5 STARS

Hello everyone! You guys might have noticed that I haven't been active on the blog for quite some time. I always announce on twitter that i'm back and off hiatus, but I always end up neglecting the blog anyway.

I really don't have any other reason to explain my negligence and absence aside from life, in general. These last few months have been extremely stressful for me; I had to study for final exams, compile requirements, organize my extra curricular activities, prepare and practice for prom, practices for our recognition day, do project defenses, and every possible thing that comes with being a junior in high school. I had to wake up early and go home late, so I didn't have any time left for blogging or reading. Life was awesome and depressing at the same time.

It's finally summer break in the Philippines and I've done everything that I had to do to move on to senior year next school year, so I am officially FREE! That means I can finally make time for reading all the books I want to read and write all about them on my blog. It's the perfect time to resurrect The Selkie Reads Stories, yes? I miss blogging and ranting and writing reviews so much, but I miss you guys most of all. All the readers that have been commenting on my posts and all the blogger friends I've been fangirling chatting with on twitter have been sorely missed and I really really hope that you guys will forgive me for neglecting my blogger duties and take me back with open arms :(

And now that I've said my piece, I've prepared a little treat for all of my readers. To compensate for my lack of activity and for thanking you guys for everything, I've created a giveaway of a book set that includes three books that i'm going to review soon on the blog, and these books are:

Every Day
by David Levithan
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Publisher: Text Publishing
Publication date: September 26th 2012
Pages: 304 (paperback)
Source: finished copy from publisher
Author's website | GoodReads

Every day a different body. Every day a different life. Every day in love with the same girl. 

Every morning, A wakes in a different person’s body, a different person’s life. There’s never any warning about where it will be or who it will be. A has made peace with that, even established guidelines by which to live: Never get too attached. Avoid being noticed. Do not interfere. 

And then A wakes up in the body of Justin and meets Justin’s girlfriend, Rhiannon. From that moment, the rules by which A has been living no longer apply. Because A has found someone he wants to be with—day in, day out, day after day.

I wake up thinking of yesterday. The joy is in remembering; the pain is in knowing it was yesterday.

Every Day isn't my favorite Levithan book, but it surely will be one of the ones I'll keep close to my heart. It's one of those books that may not be over all as brilliant as others, but it's own essence makes it shine with a unique brilliance.

David Levithan is one of my favorite contemporary YA writers and when I found out about Every Day, I was completely floored. I couldn't grasp the concept of Levithan writing a paranormal/fantasy novel. I'm not sure if this is his first, but i'm more familiar with him as a contemporary kind of guy. I wasn't sure what to expect but I looked forward to reading the book nonetheless. And I am so glad that I did because I loved the reading experience Every Day gave me.

I loved the dialogue, I loved A's inner narrative, I loved A's interaction with the people who are close to the people he becomes. Levithan weaves all the aspects of the narrative so well and the characters he introduces as the book progresses and the descriptions of the things that A goes through to every single day are so overwhelmingly surreal. That's what I loved the most about this book, I guess. Every morning when A wakes up in the body of a different person, Levithan introduced me to that person and that person's life and the people around him/her. The way he embodies the different characters astound me because they were all so uniquely interesting. I will forever be a fan of Levithan's fluidly easygoing writing and his strong voice that emanates honesty.

Rhiannon. The plot basically surrounds her because this book basically is a romance and she's the whole reason why A is doing all these things that he doesn't usually do, but I didn't care much for her. I mean, I was okay with her character, but I strongly feel that the book would be equally as interesting even if she didn't enter the story line. What I did like about Rhiannon was that she was like a real person; ethical and logical and used her brain in every situation, and she took into consideration how her actions would reflect other people.

Most people hated that the love A felt for Rhiannon was like instalove and that he was doing all these things for a girl he barely knew, but imagine yourself in his position for a moment. If you led a life like him and then a girl you can imagine spending every day with enters your life and then everything you lived for suddenly has meaning, wouldn't you jump at every opportunity to be with her? Love isn't always out there as an option for him and when life gave him a chance at it, he did what any person with a right mind would do and took it. And from Rhiannon's point of view, would you be willing to be with someone and love someone who became a different person every day? There's so much more to this book than others let on, because it makes you think and wonder and makes you thankful for every day.

I'm not a big fan of the decisions that A made and the things that he did either, but I understand why he did them. I'm proud that he made a good decision and did the right thing in the end; it's like he opened his eyes and finally faced the truth. And because of that, A and David Levithan and this book tore my heart apart with equal amounts of depression and happiness.

THE NUB AND GIST: 4.5 STARS

Nobody But Us
by Kristin Halbrook
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary
Publisher: HarperTeen
Publication date: January 29th 2013
Pages: 272 (paperback)
Source: ARC from publisher
Author's website | GoodReads

Bonnie and Clyde meets IF I STAY in this addictively heart-wrenching story of two desperate teenagers on the run from their pasts. 

They’re young. They’re in love. They’re on the run.
Zoe wants to save Will as much as Will wants to save Zoe. When Will turns eighteen, they decide to run away together. But they never expected their escape to be so fraught with danger.... 

When the whole world is after you, sometimes it seems like you can’t run fast enough. 

Nobody But Us, told in alternating perspectives from Will and Zoe, is an unflinching novel, in turns heartbreaking and hopeful, about survival, choices, and love...and how having love doesn't always mean that you get a happy ending. Described as “beautiful, heartbreaking, and exhilarating” by Kody Keplinger, author of The DUFF, Nobody But Us will prove irresistible to fans of Nina Lacour, Jenny Han, and Sara Zarr.

“It is so hard to leave—until you leave. And then it is the easiest goddamned thing in the world.” 

Nobody But Us takes us into the lives of Zoe and Will, too extremely troubled teenagers who each had heavy baggage of their own. Sick and tired of their lives, the pair decides to run away from it all and start a new life. I had such goddamned high hopes for this title, purely because it is compared to ‘If I Stay’, and for a short while this fact made me pencil the book wayyy on top of the 'to-read' list.

Zoe is a victim of child abuse. Her mother died when she was young and this cruel circumstance left her in the hands of her alcoholic and extremely violent father.  Zoe hid behind heavy makeup and kept her head hung low whenever she went to school and no one even noticed. That is- no one except Will, the newest 'bad boy' from the orphanage. Will pointed out her masked bruises and refused to turn away. The pair eventually found themselves caring for each other, wanting to change each others' lives.

Zoe and Will hightail it out across the States, escaping the weight of the real world. However, the taste of their freedom was bittersweet; Will's past criminal record and latest law violations keep the FBI on their trail, leaving a lot of tension, drama, hesitation, tears, unhealthy suspicions, forgiven apologies, tears, and unsaid thoughts. Whenever something good happened, a thousand misfortunes was always there to follow.

The book is narrated by Will and Zoe in alternating POVs. Because of this, I felt like I truly understood why the characters were doing what they were doing, even if they were so freakin annoying most of the time. I understood their hesitations, their heartbreak, their cautiousness, and their excitement. I understood them, but I didn't really feel them. I felt like they were, well, fictional. The author bombarded them with supposed characteristics and traits and spoonfed them with a million problems, but I never really felt like those problems were there if I wasn't told beforehand. It was as if Zoe and Will were virtual avatars, just the right features and backstories on the outside but nothing on the inside; almost like a hollow shell.

Upon finishing this book, I find that I actually really enjoyed it. This came as quite a surprise to me since I had a hard time getting into it. I previously complained how I couldn't feel the essence of Zoe and Will, but that didn't stop me from wanting them to get a happy ending. I mean, i'm not that heartless. But Kristin Halbrook is apparently a teeny bit heartless; she gave Nobody But Us one of the saddest and most tragic endings in the history of ever. If I was more attached to the characters, I would have been weeping and wailing. I accepted the ending though, because even if Zoe and Will's great escape came to a close, I know that they won't lose the things they got out of, and the things they got in the process.

My rating says it all -- it was OK. Not wonderful. Not terrible. Somewhat thrilling. It wasn't exciting, but it didn't have any tedious moments either. The plot was interesting, the writing was gorgeous, it engages you and wraps you up in the story, but the lack of character depth was really evident to me. It's a book that was aiming for the bullseye but didn't exactly make it. I guess I was just looking, and expecting, something a bit more.

THE NUB AND GIST: 3 STARS

The Peculiar (The Peculiar #1)
by Stefan Bachmann
Genre: Middle-grade Steampunk Fantasy
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Publication date: September 18th 2012
Source: finished copy from publisher
Author's website | GoodReads

Don't get yourself noticed and you won't get yourself hanged.

In the faery slums of Bath, Bartholomew Kettle and his sister Hettie live by these words. Bartholomew and Hettie are changelings--Peculiars--and neither faeries nor humans want anything to do with them.

One day a mysterious lady in a plum-colored dress comes gliding down Old Crow Alley. Bartholomew watches her through his window. Who is she? What does she want? And when Bartholomew witnesses the lady whisking away, in a whirling ring of feathers, the boy who lives across the alley--Bartholomew forgets the rules and gets himself noticed.

First he's noticed by the lady in plum herself, then by something darkly magical and mysterious, by Jack Box and the Raggedy Man, by the powerful Mr. Lickerish . . . and by Arthur Jelliby, a young man trying to slip through the world unnoticed, too, and who, against all odds, offers Bartholomew friendship and a way to belong.

Part murder mystery, part gothic fantasy, part steampunk adventure, The Peculiar is Stefan Bachmann's riveting, inventive, and unforgettable debut novel.

Tamora Pierce meets George R. R. Martin in this smart, political, medieval fantasy-thriller.
There is a new king on the throne of Tildor. Currents of political unrest sweep the country as two warring crime families seek power, angling to exploit the young Crown's inexperience. At the Academy of Tildor, the training ground for elite soldiers, Cadet Renee de Winter struggles to keep up with her male peers. But when her mentor, a notorious commander recalled from active duty to teach at the Academy, is kidnapped to fight in illegal gladiator games, Renee and her best friend Alec find themselves thrust into a world rife with crime, sorting through a maze of political intrigue, and struggling to resolve what they want, what is legal, and what is right.

Alex Lidell (www.alexlidell.com) was a finalist in the 2010 Amazon Breakthrough Novelist Award competition and lives in New Jersey. This is her first novel.

                                                                                                                                                                                    Alex Lidell is a YA fantasy writer and author of ABNA Finalist THE CADET OF TILDOR (Penguin, 2013).  

Although English is Alex’s primary language, it wasn’t her first.  Coming from Russia, Alex learned english in elementary school and fell in love with reading when the school librarian put Tamora Pierce’s ALANNA into her hands.  Years later, in college, it was another book that re-united Alex with russian, which she had shunned in adolescence. The Three Musketeers.*  Alex thanks both books, and the writers who created them.

Beyond writing, Alex is also a photographer, a horseback rider, and a paramedic.  The latter two go hand in hand more often than one would like.  She is trying to self-teach herself and her horse to sword-fight.

Alex would love to see THE CADET OF TILDOR in the classroom and is working on developing teacher guides for the novel.  She enjoys “e-meeting” both students and educators.