Review: Skinny - Book #1 False Reflections Series - Laura L. Smith - October 2008 Cast your mind back with me for a moment. Years ago, one of my absolute favourite genres to curl up with was what I fondly called Edgy YA Christian Fiction - stories that tackled the real, messy, complicated parts of teenage life without shying away from faith. Skinny by Laura L. Smith is exactly that kind of book, and it has stayed with me ever since I first read it. Melissa grows up surrounded by all the good things  a warm, loving Christian family and a tight circle of friends. She's also a dancer, and it's through that world that she begins to see herself as something she isn't: fat. What makes this story particularly compelling is that Melissa doesn't stop eating altogether. Instead, she starts counting calories and restricting, quietly convincing herself that because it isn't that bad, it isn't really a problem. It's that kind of slow, insidious thinking that makes her j...

Review: When I'm With You - Book #3 Jane Austen Academy Series - Cecilia Gray - December 2012 Years ago, I stumbled upon The Jane Austen Academy series, and it's become one of those comfort reads I return to when the mood strikes. As a devoted mood reader, I have to wait for exactly the right moment to dive into each installment, and recently I found myself craving something fun and cozy. A YA retelling of Northanger Abbey? Perfect. When I'm With You centers on Kat, a character whose dual nature immediately captivated me. Off stage, she's awkward and naive, someone who hasn't quite found her footing in everyday interactions. But put her on stage, and she transforms completely confident, radiant, utterly alive. When she lands a position as Josh Wickham's PA on a real movie set over Christmas break, with the added bonus of working as an extra, it seems like a dream come true. What follows is a sobering education in the darker side of Hollywood glamour. Cecilia...

Review: See Jane Run - Hannah Jayne - January 2014 I'll be honest when I picked up See Jane Run, I was practically buzzing with excitement. Hannah Jayne has become one of those authors whose books I snatch up the moment I spot them, and this premise? Absolutely brilliant. A mysterious postcard, a hidden birth certificate, parents who might not be who they claim , it's the kind of setup that should have had me racing through pages late into the night with my reading lamp on full blast. The story follows Riley, who receives an unsettling postcard with just four words: "I know who you are." Things spiral from there when she discovers a birth certificate for Jane Elizabeth O'Leary tucked inside her baby book. Suddenly, Riley's overprotective parents seem less endearing and more suspicious. Were they keeping her safe all these years, or were they hiding something far more sinister? I loved watching Riley transform from a sheltered teenager into someone determined...

When Your Reading List Becomes Your Life: Why You Need to Read "Diary of a Teenage Literary Freak" What happens when a self-proclaimed book nerd's carefully ordered world collides with classic literature and an infuriatingly arrogant classmate? That's the premise of Diary of a Teenage Literary Freak, a YA story that brilliantly blurs the line between the pages we read and the lives we live. Meet Skye Rodgers: front-row student, library regular, and proud observer of Harperville High's social hierarchy from a comfortable distance. She's perfectly content being invisible, thank you very much. Her world is books, good grades, and avoiding the drama of the A-List crowd. It's safe. It's predictable. It's exactly how she likes it. Then Miss D'Angelo drops an English assignment that changes everything: read one book per week and connect it to your own life through diary entries. Simple enough, right? Except Skye's life is allegedly too boring f...