The Boyfriend League - Rachel Hawthorne

Goodreads summary:

The Ragland Rattlers

$1 Night

$1 baseball cap with home team logo
$1 program
$1 hot dogs
$1 drinks
$1 popcorn

But how much to get the hot pitcher to notice you exist?

My review:

3/5

Sooooo cute! I still don't understand a thing about baseball, but I'm pretty sure it's because I'm a lost cause.

This is a really fun and nice book to relax yourself. I loved the characters, their chemistry, their passion for baseball and the interesting plot. While I must say I didn'f really like the idea that started the story, which was to find a boyfriend for Dani and her best friend, I liked seeing their characters develop and realize that their initial plan had some flaws. They started as kind of superficial, since all they cared about was having a boyfriend, no matter who he was, but actually getting one made them grow a lot and I enjoyed reading about them. There's also development when it comes to Dani's family, since she sees her sister as a superficial beauty pageant when the story begins, but she realizes there's a depth in her she had never suspected.

I've seen this many times, but I love reading about passionate characters. Whether it's about music, literature, arts, sports or maths, I'm often inspired by passionate people. I loved reading a baseball themed book, even though I could never share this passion, but I must admit I wish I had seen a bit more of this passion in Dani. While she talks about how she has baseball posters in her room and how she used to play with her dad, it all seems to stop when she starts thinking about having a boyfriend, because all she can think about then are beautiful abs, arms and faces. I know she's a fan of the sport, but I don't think it's well represented.

I thought Dani and Jason's relationship was adorable. It's very realistic and I could see their chemistry pretty much from the beginning. I love that they have so many things to talk about and that they care a lot about each other ever since they met. I do wish their relationship had been a bit less parent-friendly, because although it was the best thing to do, it felt a bit too perfect for me (parents-wise) and it left me kind of frustrated (which is the big deal, haha!).

I had a really nice time reading this book and I'm definitely still a fan of Rachel Hawthorne!

Lying Out Loud (The DUFF #2) - Kody Keplinger

Goodreads summary:

Sonny Ardmore is an excellent liar. She lies about her dad being in prison. She lies about her mom kicking her out. And she lies about sneaking into her best friend's house every night because she has nowhere else to go.

Amy Rush might be the only person Sonny shares everything with - secrets, clothes, even a nemesis named Ryder Cross. Ryder's the new kid at Hamilton High and everything Sonny and Amy can't stand - a prep-school snob. But Ryder has a weakness: Amy. So when Ryder emails Amy asking her out, the friends see it as a prank opportunity not to be missed.

But without meaning to, Sonny ends up talking to Ryder all night online. And to her horror, she realizes that she might actually 'like' him. Only there's one small catch: he thinks he's been talking to Amy. So Sonny comes up with an elaborate scheme to help Ryder realize that she's the girl he's really wanted all along. Can Sonny lie her way to the truth, or will all her lies end up costing her both Ryder and Amy?

My review:

4/5

OOOOOOOH I ACTUALLY LOVED THIS! I've been meaning to read this for a long time, but I never got around to it. I'm glad I finally did!

As someone who values authenticity and honesty, I knew this book could be something I either love or despise. I was seriously hoping that I wouldn't read about a shallow character who never improves, but I knew from The Duff that Kody Keplinger is great with character development, which is why I went into this book not too scared. I didn't really understand Sonny's lying habit at first, which annoyed me, but this book was so addicting that it didn't even matter to me. I'm glad that this whole crazy thing about pretending to be Amy when she's talking to Ryder online started out as an honest mistake, because I don't think I could've taken it if it had just been out if jealousy or a joke.

I loved Sonny and Ryder's banter. Their chemistry is evident and I loved seeing them realize they had been wrong about the other person. They're both interesting characters with an interesting (to say the least) relationship and I can see why they want to be together, unlike some YA novels. They both help each other out and it makes a major improvement on their lives. Since I loved their relationship so much, I found it hard to continue reading at some point, because I had no idea how it could end well and I was kind of terrified.

I broke down when I learned Sonny's story. I knew something huge must have happened to her to make her want to lie so much, but I never really knew what to expect. Her dad being in prison was already something big, but I didn't expect to be so affected by her story. I cried and cried and cried, but I think this part of the story might have been my favourite. I couldn't stop reading and I loved how Amy and Sonny tried to save their friendship. I had hated how Sonny had been treating her best friend, but I know for a fact that it made both of them grow up a lot and I loved them even more at the end of the story.

In this book, you won't find a perfect, lovable character with an amazing life, but sometimes, it's even better that way.

Distraction (Westbrook #1) - Laura Clark

Goodreads summary:

Seventeen-near-old, Laila Patterson, would never describe her heart as fickle. She understands the difference between reality and fantasy, which is why Sam Woodson is not realistic boyfriend material. After all, he is in college, and college boys simply do not date high school girls. Plus, he is Laila’s older brother’s best friend. According to the unspoken bro-code, messing around with your friend’s little sister is pretty high on the list of forbidden taboos.

What happens when Laila discovers that her secret crush on Sam isn’t quite so one-sided? What if the only way to keep him is to keep their relationship hush-hush? Is Sam worth all of the lying and sneaking around?

As if things weren’t confusing enough with Sam, an old family friend suddenly shows up after being gone for more than three years. She isn't expecting Trevor Maddox to move back to Westbrook. She isn't expecting him to attend her high school, and she certainly isn't expecting him to be so damned gorgeous.

Laila doesn't want or need this unexpected distraction. . . or does she?

My review:

Quite a quick, fun read! I started this book knowing there would probably be a love triangle of some kind, but I never expected to fall for a particular character the way I did... It's actually the opposite of what I was expecting! No matter what this character could do or say, I loved him from the very beginning and I adored his chemistry with Laila. However, I quickly got tired of the triangle aspect of this love story. I've never been a hue fan of those anyways, so that was a given, but I gue3/5 Quite a quick, fun read! I started this book knowing there would probably be a love triangle of some kind, but I never expected to fall for a particular character the way I did... It's actually the opposite of what I was expecting! No matter what this character could do or say, I loved him from the very beginning and I adored his chemistry with Laila. However, I quickly got tired of the triangle aspect of this love story. I've never been a hue fan of those anyways, so that was a given, but I guess I hopef it would change my mind. I wanted to shout at Laila every time she was with the character I didn't want her to be with, because it was very clear in my mind who should be her boyfriend. I understood her being jealous of Avery to some extent, because I know what it's like to be best friends with a gorgeous girl, but I disliked how she acted because she simply couldn't make up her mind. I'm guessing that it's all because I would have stopped all relationships, if I had been in her place, instead of being confused and having misplaced thoughts all the time. I know it can't be everyone's reaction, but there were times when I simply couldn't stand it. I do think this is a lovely story, even though there were parts that felt out of place. There are sentences, and even chapters, that feel a bit like they're out of a textbook, because it's like they want us to think about them, but in an obvious way. Their message is good, but they're just not subtle enough, I guess. I think the entire world, like the characters and the places, created by the author is brilliant, though. Thank you Laura Clark for sending me this book in exchange for an honest review.