Reviews written by Tara Gonzalez

I have such COMPLICATED feelings on The Princesses of Iowa by M. Molly Backes. For some reason, even after reading the summary, I didn’t expect The Princesses of Iowa to be as heavy and emotional as it was. I read the prologue of The Princesses of Iowa...

There were aspects of Purity by Jackson Pearce that I really enjoyed and others that ended up feeling a bit meh to me. I felt like Purity ended on a good note, but there were parts in the middle that felt a bit forced. For one thing,...

HOLY WHAT. That was kind of my reaction the ENTIRE time I was reading Unraveling by Elizabeth Norris. There are so many freaking twists throughout Unraveling and I was SO TENSE the entire time I was reading it, and I literally could not put it down. First...

Masque of the Red Death by Bethany Griffin is a little hard to put into words. It's a dark and intense book with contagions and Victorian times and slightly steampunkish and gothic themes. Basically - Masque of the Red Death isn't a book that's usually something I'm into. So if...

Storm by Brigid Kemmerer is one of those books that I thought looked interesting, that I thought I would like, but totally took me by surprise not only in story but also without how much I genuinely loved it. Storm starts off with a bang. There's enough...

Review originally posted here http://bookalicious.org/2012/04/review-the-mapmaker-and-the-ghost-by-sarvenaz-tash/ The Mapmaker and the Ghost by Sarvenaz Tash is filled with fantastical adventures and map talk galore! It’s entertaining and imaginative and sure to suck the reader in right away. Goldenrod Moram is a wonderfully done protagonist – she’s...

Ripper by Amy Carol Reeves started out pretty rocky for me, I must say. I felt sort of dropped into Abbie’s world and there were new characters thrust at me left and right, and I was just so confused by what was going on in Ripper. That...

I really enjoyed Kiss the Morning Star by Elissa Janine Hoole. I’ve read a bit of Kerouac, and while I certainly won’t be running off to emulate his adventures, I do love books featuring road trips and oodles of self discovery, which basically describes Kiss the Morning Star to a...

Storybound by Marissa Burt is the perfect book for lovers of middle grade fantasy and adventure. From the first few chapters, the reader will be sucked into the land of Story, just as Una Fairchild is. Marissa Burt did a great job building the characters in Storybound....

A Temptation of Angels by Michelle Zink was completely different than what I was expecting. The concept was super interesting and I really enjoyed the fast paced story, although I never really connected with the characters. I think it's super hard to create an original and interesting...

I really, really enjoyed How My Summer Went Up in Flames by Jennifer Salvato Doktorski. I thought it was a fun story full of flawed and realistic characters and it was exactly what I was hoping for when I picked it up. I've read that some people...

Alright, I really, really liked Reboot by Amy Tintera. I thought the concept was super awesome and Amy's storytelling skills are superb. I was just totally sucked in. I am a slow reader lately (sigh), but Reboot was one that I just had to finish the same day I picked...

I am a massive fan of Terra Elan McVoy's books - they're relatable and realistic and fun and moving. So was I a little bit worried at first before I started Criminal. I knew right away that it was going to be vastly different from her previous books and I...

My feelings for Requiem are mixed. It’s been months since I read it, and I’m still not sure how I feel. I put down Requiem and felt satisfied. I was content with the ending – I’m a firm believer that there was no perfect way to end this series and...

Okay, I seriously loved The Art of Wishing by Lindsay Ribar. It was cute and fun, but also engaging and very tense, especially towards the end. I liked Margo. I really, really liked her. She was exactly the kind of protagonist I hope for when it comes...