Summer Solstice Celebrations

The weather's finally starting to look up and feel like summer here in Seattle, and I couldn't be any happier!

Michael and I kicked off my 3-day weekend with our favorite, Bottlehouse. I always love dessert with wine and their strawberry rhubarb with a shortbread cookie did not disappoint!

On Friday morning I met with my writing critique partner over coffee to go over edits on our manuscripts. Instead of our usual hour, we talked for almost three. So many kinks to work out! I'm just so thankful for our writing partnership, I feel like I'm learning so much from that I have a feeling draft four will bring my manuscript close to where I want it to be. Afterwards, I sat down to write on Michael and I's new dining table.

Check out our cool wine art!

Friday night we took it easy and went to eat vegetarian thai and grabbed drinks and dessert on Broadway. Once we came home, I watched the Delirium's pilot episode on Hulu. Loved Emma Roberts in it. I can't believe Fox passed on the show!

Yesterday, we went out for breakfast and took it pretty easy before going to his sister housewarming party which was a blast. After, Michael and I went to Ballard for our date night and went to The Walrus and Carpenter for dinner. This place is such a gem and as great as we remembered. For my first time there, check out the post here.

We started off with oysters. Let me just say vino verde and oysters pair so damn well together.

 Then these babies below just about blew my mind:

smoked herring croquettes

 Michael really loved this one:

spicy sausage

 Then we just had to get the steak tartare. The last time I had it was two years ago in Paris.

steak tartare

Dessert was a no-brainer for us. We fell in love with this dessert the last time we came so we just had to get it again. By far, one of he top desserts I've had in Seattle!

maple bread pudding

 When we got home, Blaire immediately started scenting our shoes and demanding rubs. Looks like this little guy missed us!

This year will be my first official year in Seattle. Last year I was in and out switching back and forth to Sacramento, so it will be interesting where this summer takes me. I do have my sights on eastern Washington though. Anywhere there's wine, I'm totally there.

Here's to one heck of a summer :)

Book Review: We'll Always Have Summer (Summer #3) by Jenny Han

I rated it 2.5 stars out of 5.

Overview: It's been two years since Conrad told Belly to go with Jeremiah. She and Jeremiah have been inseparable ever since, even attending the same college-- only, their relationship hasn't exactly been the happily ever after Belly had hoped it would be. And when Jeremiah makes the worst mistake a boy can make, Belly is forced to question what she thought was true love. Does she really have a future with Jeremiah? Has she ever gotten over Conrad? It's time for Belly to decide, once and for all, who has her heart forever

Review: Too predicatable. Han changes POV again by including Conrad's side instead of Jeremiah's making it known that Belly and Conrad will end up together. I guess how they get there is the part worth reading. I read this trilogy because it was an easy quick read that was entertaining. It's what my co-worker would call 'trashy romance novels,' that you just gotta read once in awhile. In my case, it was the YA drama I had to get out of my system.

If you like drama where two brother's are fighting over one girl, then this trilogy is for you. Otherwise, I'd pick up Han's To All the Boys I've Loved Before for a cutesy fun romance.

Book Review: It's Not Summer Without You (Summer #2) by Jenny Han

I rated it 2.8 out of 5 stars.

 

Overview: Can summer be truly summer without Cousins Beach?

It used to be that Belly counted the days until summer, until she was back at Cousins Beach with Conrad and Jeremiah. But not this year. Not after Susannah got sick again and Conrad stopped caring. Everything that was right and good has fallen apart, leaving Belly wishing summer would never come.

But when Jeremiah calls saying Conrad has disappeared, Belly knows what she must do to make things right again. And it can only happen back at the beach house, the three of them together, the way things used to be. If this summer really and truly is the last summer, it should end the way it started--at Cousins Beach.

Review: The sequel to The Summer I Turned Pretty was predictable, just like the first book. However, it's an easy read so I got through it pretty quickly. Han changes POV in the sequel by including Jeremiah's POV which already tells us that Belly's going to choose him and give up on Conrad by the end of the novel. It's a major giveaway which takes the suspense out of the love triangle, though I kinda don't like Conrad anyway, so I was cool with it.

The novel was character-driven instead of plot-driven, but I'm not a fan of Belly's character so the sequel kind of fell flat for me.

Book Review: The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han

I rated it 3 out of 5 stars.

Overview: Belly measures her life in summers. Everything good, everything magical happens between the months of June and August. Winters are simply a time to count the weeks until the next summer, a place away from the beach house, away from Susannah, and most importantly, away from Jeremiah and Conrad. They are the boys that Belly has known since her very first summer--they have been her brother figures, her crushes, and everything in between. But one summer, one terrible and wonderful summer, the more everything changes, the more it all ends up just the way it should have been all along

Review: I read this relatively quickly, and I found it to be enjoyable. It's a great summer read that I'm sure my 16 year-old self would love. However, I rated it only 3 stars because I didn't empathize with the protagonist. She was a bit too whiny for my taste. I also found it to be really predicatable, but sometimes I like watching my predictions unfold so it wasn't that bad. I give kudos to Han on her ability to bring the characters to life. It was like reading about people I knew. Nontheless, Han delivered enough for me to pick up book the second book of the trilogy.

June Gloom Weekend

Blaire on Friday the 13th! Scary, right?

How was your weekend? Mine was great depite the June Gloom weather in Seattle! I'm loving my three-day weekends lately. The ten hour shifts takes getting used to, but alas, I think I've got my routine going. Well, just as long as I get my daily java.



I'm addicted, I know.

This weekend was one dedicated to leisure. I cruised through Jenny Han's books, took warm baths, finally got my hair cut, mani pedi, celebrated Father's day with Michael's family, watched movies, and ate well.

By eating well, I mean this:

Bottlehouse mac n' cheese, that was so heavenly I would feel guilty if I ever ate it again!

 Not to mention tapas at Tango (below is my favorite plate of the night):

And of course, Michael and I had to watch 22 Jump Street, which was just as hilarious as the first one. We also watched the new x-men movie too, both of which I highly recommend.

 

It definitely feels like summer when the best movies come out. If only the weather would catch up!

Stickin' to it and finishing.

I'm really bad at sticking to one thing and doing it well. I think I get bored easily or maybe I always get excited about something else that I forget about everything else entirely. For example:

Piano? 2 years. Flute? 3 years. Volleyball? 6 years. Soccer? 4 years. Vegan? 30 days. Vegetarian? Approximately 90 days? Pescatarian? 1 year. Competitive running? 1.5 years. Guitar? 5 years. Hot Yoga? 3 months. Boxing? 2 months.

What does this have to do with anything Michelle?

Well, because I have a difficult time staying passionate about one thing, it makes it really difficult for me to finish anything. And this is a real big problem because writing a novel takes commitment and time.

I wrote the first and second draft of M2 in like 5 months. But when it came to draft three I finished 2/3 of it in a month, and then just stopped writing for two months. I crashed and burned. I was just falling out of love with the story and feeling burnt out. And the more distance I put between myself and finishing draft three, the more anxious I was starting to become about getting back to it.

Source: caffeineglaore (tumblr)

I binge read to cope, but in the back of my mind all I kept thinking about is whether or not I'd finish.

Then my YA workshop class ended. I had been using the class as an excuse for not writing, but now that it finished I really had no excuses, did I? Work was finally starting to slow down, and now I had three-day weekends for the summer. If I was going to finish, this was the time to do it.

So I settled my hiney down and finished the last third of draft 3 in a week.

Let me repeat that: one friggin week.

All this time I was so anxious and worked up when really it would just take a week. Draft three isn't perfect and what not, but the point is I finished it. It really put into perspective for me that finishing something isn't so scary. That it's possible to finish things as long as you keep trudging forward. And that sometimes a break (like a crash and burn) is needed to get you right back where you left off.

It really just makes me want to laugh that I was so worked up about it. Anyone ever feel that way?

Book Review: To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han

I rated it 4 out of 5 stars.

Overview: To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before is the story of Lara Jean, who has never openly admitted her crushes, but instead wrote each boy a letter about how she felt, sealed it, and hid it in a box under her bed. But one day Lara Jean discovers that somehow her secret box of letters has been mailed, causing all her crushes from her past to confront her about the letters: her first kiss, the boy from summer camp, even her sister's ex-boyfriend, Josh. As she learns to deal with her past loves face to face, Lara Jean discovers that something good may come out of these letters after all.

Review: Big kudos to the marketing department for this book. I adored the cover! But anyway, never have I ever read any of Jenny Han's books. So I didn't really plan on reading this one either, but since it was on the New York Times Best-selling list for Young Adults, I decided to give it a try.

The concept was an interesting one, so I went along with the story even though I was turned off with the voice of the MC in the first couple of pages. She just didn't seem 16. She sounded more like 14. It wasn't until one third through that I actually started liking her due to her slowly changing and growing up.

I rated the book a 4 due to the 'cute' story line and the character relationships. The pace was great, it kept me turning pages so that I finished the book in one sitting. Normally, if I'm glued to a book and read it all the way through I would give it a 5, but I didn't for this one because I thought the writing was very simple. Like too simple. I'm not expecting something literary just a better enough prose for me to believe she's 16. Also, the descriptions I felt were lacking and sparse. I couldn't really picture some of the characters in my mind or the setting. Which is kinda funny, because when it comes to food, Han is very vivid.

Overall though, I enjoyed it and will definitely read the sequel (because I need to know what happens!). I've heard that Han's debut novel is pretty good, so I just bought it on my kindle. Maybe Han will make a fan of me afterall.

Book Review: Dreams of Gods & Monsters by Laini Taylor

I rated it 4 out of 5 stars.

Overview: By way of a staggering deception, Karou has taken control of the chimaera rebellion and is intent on steering its course away from dead-end vengeance. The future rests on her, if there can even be a future for the chimaera in war-ravaged Eretz.

Common enemy, common cause.

When Jael's brutal seraph army trespasses into the human world, the unthinkable becomes essential, and Karou and Akiva must ally their enemy armies against the threat. It is a twisted version of their long-ago dream, and they begin to hope that it might forge a way forward for their people.

And, perhaps, for themselves. Toward a new way of living, and maybe even love.

But there are bigger threats than Jael in the offing. A vicious queen is hunting Akiva, and, in the skies of Eretz ... something is happening. Massive stains are spreading like bruises from horizon to horizon; the great winged stormhunters are gathering as if summoned, ceaselessly circling, and a deep sense of wrong pervades the world.

What power can bruise the sky?

From the streets of Rome to the caves of the Kirin and beyond, humans, chimaera and seraphim will fight, strive, love, and die in an epic theater that transcends good and evil, right and wrong, friend and enemy.

At the very barriers of space and time, what do gods and monsters dream of? And does anything else matter?

Review: So I finished this sometime last week. This one took me awhile to get through because it was just so dense. Because I admire Taylor's writing and thought it was a fair conclusion to the trilogy I rated it a 4 even though I was leaning towards 3.5. Though the story was good, it just dragged on. Too much flowery writing that normally I would love, filled me with dread as I trudged through it. Though I pride myself in reading every little word a writer writes, I'm sad to say that I had to skim a lot of parts because nothing happened, it was just the same descriptions of emotions and yearning time and time again. The ending was okay, though I felt it really anti-climatic.

Obviously from the lack of enthusiasm in my review I was disappointed. Still a great series though! I'd still recommend it to others.

The Fault in Our Stars Movie

I didn't have enough tissues. If you have yet to see this, bring a box of kleenex!

This past weekend, I got Michael to come with me to see the film adaption of the beloved John Green novel, and it did not disappoint. I actually loved the film adaption better than the book. That's how well the film was made. Mix in a great cast and a perfect soundtrack and you've struck gold.

Now that the opening weekend is over and the numbers are in, 48 million, topping the box office, with 85% of viewership young females aged 25 and below, what does it say about the Young Adult genre?

Well, I for one am ecstatic that it's finally getting some recognition. It shows that it's a force to be reckoned with in the film and publishing industry. Not to mention, it shows the power of fandoms and social media.

I think as a teenager, some of my fondest moments were getting into series (Harry Potter and Twilight) and seeing the book come to the screen. My friends and I would all camp out, dressed up, waiting in line to get the absolute best seats. This past weekend, sitting in the theater to watch TFIOS, I'm glad that the trend continues and I can only hope that one day, I'll be able to write a book that so many young adults care about.

Wine Weekend

It's been a great few days of sunshine! The best part? There's still more to come. I think I've had my fill of rain for awhile. This weekend Michael and I had a lot of wine time. After our amazing sushi dinner date at Tamura on Friday we ended up at Bottlehouse to try their new reds on their menu and their truffles of the week.

The next day we continued our wine adventure in Woodinville with Cristine and Tim who showed us around. It was Michael and I's first time exploring the Woodinville wine country. Who knew this gem of a place was so close to Seattle?



Photo cred: Michael

Photo cred: Cristine

Photo cred: Cristine

After hitting up four tastings, I think it's safe to say that Michael and I will be coming back to Woodinville more often.

This Week

1. Michael and I watched a penis documentary on Netflix called 'Unhung Hero.' It was actually really interesting.

2. I'm currently addicted to CNN's Crimes of the Century (also on Netflix).

3. I reconnected with a close college friend and couldn't be more thankful for our friendship.

4. Reading through my November 2012 - February 2013 journal, when I was 21 and finishing my last two quarters of University, to get some perspective.

5. Yesterday, Michael pointed out that there's not enough Blaire photos on my blog, to which I replied, "I don't want to be a crazy cat blogger." Nonetheless, here are some more photos of the Blaire Bear.

 

 

6. Though we said we would lay off sushi for awhile, Michael and I are having our date night at Tamura tonight (It's just so damn good!).

7. Starting next week I'm working 4 ten hour shifts so I can get Fridays off for the summer, whooo! Friday = writing date with my manuscript at the cafe

8. Yesterday during my YA Workshop, we talked about publishing, and I don't know why, but I get so giddy thinking about it (though it'll be awhile until that time comes).

9. Today is Friday and there will be Sun in Seattle this weekend :)

Curry Butternut Squash Soup and Extreme Weight Loss

Starting work on a Tuesday really throws me off. I'm tired, lazy, and can't really seem to function. Though the Monday holiday was worth it, don't get me wrong! I just feel like I have holiday hangover!

Over the weekend Michael and I talked about being healthier (we really do eat out way too much). This week we're off to a great start. Since it was my turn to cook yesterday I made a curry butternut squash soup topped with some greek yogurt paired with roasted rainbow carrots! Obviously, from my enthusiasm, you can tell that I am quite proud of myself! It tasted better than I had hoped!

Yesterday, I also caught the first episode of season 4's Extreme Weight Loss. I love Chris and Heidi Powell, but I have to admit I like the previous seasons better where it focused on just one contestant instead of two. You were able to see their transformation more when Chris lived with the contestant for three months. However, it's understandable that they changed it considering his booming family. Nonetheless, I always enjoy EWL better than the Biggest Loser because it's more inspirational to me.

Memorial Day Weekend

Photo Cred: Cristine

Last year during Memorial Day Weekend, Michael and I were in California for my sister's wedding. This year, we stayed in Seattle. Michael's parents invited us over for a barbeque Saturday, which is always a pleasure for us. Luckily, it didn't rain and the weather ended up turning out pretty nice.

Sunday, however, was a rainy day for us! Nonetheless Michael and I went to brunch, this week at Cafe Flora! Michael loved his traveler's chai and green tea and ginger waffle. I enjoyed coffee and a scramble!

 

After brunch we did our weekly grocery shopping and cleaned up the entire apartment. Afterwards we rewarded ourselves with some lunch and wine at Bottlehouse.

 

The rest of the weekend we took it easy. I finished proofing the second part of M2 so that It's ready to send to my beta readers and so that I can finally start writing the ending! My YA workshop will be done in two weeks, so I definitely won't have that to use as an excuse for not finishing. Also, almost done with the Daughter of Smoke and Bone Trilogy. Review to come!

Tango

For the past few weeks, Michael and I's date nights have consisted of sushi (we have a problem, we know), but we decided to go back to trying new things. This past friday Michael took me to Tango's near downtown Seattle for Spanish Tapas! It was oh so good, and we'll definitely make a trip back. They have a great menu, excellent service, and a neat ambiance.

Boquerone Toasts

Albondigas

Wild Mushrooms

Calamares

Cana de Oveja

Pastel de Limon

 My favorite plate was the Calamares! Best ones I've had in Seattle so far.

A genuinely happy Michael!

After Tango,  I took Michael to watch Godzilla. He loves anything with big giant monsters so we watched in 3D. Needless to say, he loved it.

Putting the Pressure on M2

So for a long while, I didn't want anyone to read M2, until it was fleshed out and nearly there, hoping I could impress my beta readers.

But you know what? I really need help. I need feedback for some guidance. Almost done with my workshop course, I realized that I needed more fresh eyes to spot the gaping holes of my manuscript, and also to put pressure on me to finish the last third of my rewrites.

So I'm letting go of my ego and calling in my beta readers for reinforcement. I just sent them the first third of M2 and I'm kind of holding my breath.

I always perceived writing to be a lonesome endeavor, and it is for the majority part of it, but I realized now that it's a collaborative effort to improve my writing by listening and learning from others. Not to mention it's the support and encouragement from others that keep me going.

Like a writing group where I can discuss whatever I want, which has led to some great writing blogger friends, and a class full of YA enthusiasts who get why I truy love YA so much. Not to mention friends and family, who continue to believe in me, even when I hardly believe in myself.

These are things I should always keep in mind when writing, but rarely do, so as I reminder to myself, I wrote this blog post.

Hopefully with the pressure, I can squeeze a diamond out of M2.

How I feel about my WIP

 This stare probably says it all. Slightly narrowed eyes with an eyebrow arched as I look at my WIP wondering how I fell so in love with it only to become so sick of it...

Okay so not really. This picture was just me goofing off as my boyfriend Michael snapped a picture of me last weekend while we attended his brother-in-law's graduation, but I felt like it was appropriate to my topic: my feelings about my WIP.

It's been awhile since I've written a 'personal' blog post. Lately, I've kinda just posted about my current reads. I'm a binge reader when writing gets tough as you can tell. In a way when I read books I really enjoy and get lost in, it usually inspires me to get writing again having my cause in mind: to get others lost in my story.

However in the past month, I've dropped the ball on M2. Two thirds done of my third draft, but somehow I lost my fuel and I'm stranded on a road, passing the time reading books in hopes that someone will drive by and help with refueling.

I suppose that's what my YA workshop class is for... and I think it's getting me there. Luckily, I have an awesome critique partner who really has an eye for editing and is sharp to spot the little holes in my story. So maybe with all the collective notes from the end of class, it'll be enough to fuel me up to continue the long, long, journey.

Currently though, M2 is like that amazing song I've put on repeat, listening to it over and over, until I know all the words, but the one I eventually get sick of so I change the station on my radio everytime it comes on. In the end I hope with enough space and time, it'll become the song I'm fond of, always bringing me back to a memory relived everytime I hear it.

But for now, Blaire's expression will suffice in conveying my emotions.

I'm also currently a part of an online writer's group where we meet online and discuss 'writing topics' and I conveyed my feelings to them. They had great ideas for me to make it through my hurdle: get lost on a tangent that can lead to another project, just take a break, push yourself, and just words of encouragment that really help.

So, if you are in a similar place as I in your WIP, I hope this post was a somewhat source of comfort to show that you are not alone.

Best of luck to you and your writing endeavors!

Book Review: Days of Blood & Starlight by Laini Taylor

I rated it 5 out of 5 stars.

 

Overview: Once upon a time, an angel and a devil fell in love and dared to imagine a world free of bloodshed and war.

This is not that world.

Art student and monster's apprentice Karou finally has the answers she has always sought. She knows who she is—and what she is. But with this knowledge comes another truth she would give anything to undo: She loved the enemy and he betrayed her, and a world suffered for it.

In this stunning sequel to the highly acclaimed Daughter of Smoke & Bone, Karou must decide how far she'll go to avenge her people. Filled with heartbreak and beauty, secrets and impossible choices, Days of Blood & Starlight finds Karou and Akiva on opposing sides as an age-old war stirs back to life.

While Karou and her allies build a monstrous army in a land of dust and starlight, Akiva wages a different sort of battle: a battle for redemption. For hope.

But can any hope be salvaged from the ashes of their broken dream?

Review: I really love it when I catch on to a series where I don't have to wait for the next installment! Why, you ask? Because it allows me to binge read in bed all day long! I love lazy reading days. That's what I did on Sunday. I finished the second installement of the Daughter of Smoke & Bone trilogy.

Let me just say, sequels kind of scare me, just because sequels have always been kind of a let down (except the second installment in the Hunger Games, I thought that was the best in the series), but Taylor seriously does not disappoint! I will say that Days of Blood & Starlight is definitely darker, more grim, filled with pain, and man I just f e e l for Karou, you know? You just keep thinking, things can't get any worse, but they do, and you're just clutching this story in your hands holding your breath, just hoping and waiting things will get better.

But of course, they don't.
Which just makes you read on.

Taylor does a good job with tension in her books and the second installment is an excellent example of it. Her talent with characterization is very impressive. Each character is unique and brings something to the story that really makes it come to life.

I don't want to spoil anything, but I rated it 5 out of 5 so just read it, kay? If you love YA fantasy/paranormal with a tragic romance, than this one's for you.

Book Review: Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

I rated it 5 out of 5 stars.

Overview: Around the world, black handprints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.

In a dark and dusty shop, a devil’s supply of human teeth grown dangerously low.

And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherwordly war.

Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real, she’s prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands", she speaks many languages - not all of them human - and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she’s about to find out.

When beautiful, haunted Akiva fixes fiery eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?

Review: So remember how I said I was reading this book on this week's RTW post? Well, I literally just finished it like 5 minutes ago during my lunch break, and you can bet your hiney that I'm going to buy the second installment of the series after I post this.

First off, the writing was absolutely amazing and the world-building was just fantastic! It sucked me in right away and I was catapulted into this world figuring out my way just like the main character. The narrative structure was also unique. I didn't feel like the flashbacks were flashbacks, but a parallel story-I was entranced by both.

This story definitely takes everything you think you know about myth, lore, love, and hope and just revamps it in a way that suprises you, but you get completely. It's like Romeo and Juliet as angels and demons, but the demons aren't really demons, and the lore is just so refreshing, and oh my gosh, the characters.

It was a grand time reading it, well except when I came to the ending and my jaw just completely dropped (I guess you gotta readi it to get what I mean).

Laini Taylor, you kind of broke my heart.

RTW: What are you reading right now?

In response to YA Highway's question, I am currently reading Laini Taylor's Daughter of Smoke and Bone. Just one fourth in, I have a feeling that I'm going to love it. My YA Workshop critique partner suggested the book to me after reading a few chapters of my manuscript. She thought that I would appreciate Taylor's writing style, since it is somewhat similar to my own. Ha! I can only hope I can do as well as Taylor. Her writing is phenomenal! Not to mention her world building!

Can't wait to finish it. Book review to follow!

What are you currently reading? Post your answer on your blog/social media.

My blog is not dead!

I can't believe it's been almost two weeks since my last post, for that I apologize. I just haven't felt quite like myself. Ever go through that? Ever feel like that?

May has been b u s y. It's the busy season at work, which means after I get off I'm pretty much wiped out for the rest of the day. Too wiped out to post, too wiped out to read, and just too wiped out to write.

Which is bad, because May is the start to my YA Workshop classes! A month has gone by without me being remotely involved in my story. I feel a major disconnection, but it's okay. I think I need time away from it and just to get feedback before I dive back in (or at least, that's what I'm telling myself). Overall, this workshop has been quite a different experience compared to my collegiate workshop courses. Still undecided on my opinion of it, though it's interesting to read other people's work; it makes me feel not so alone in my endeavor.

Also, mother's day was yesterday: Cyber love to all the mother's out there! My first time being away from my mother this year :/ so if you're lucky enough to be close to your mom, don't take each day for granted.

The sun is also back in Seattle, so maybe once I soak in some more vitamin D, I'll start feeling like little old California me.

I hope this post cleared up that I am in fact alive, and that my blog is not dead! To make up for my lack of posting, I threw in a Blaire photo. Happy Monday! More posts to come!

Book Review: Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac by Gabrielle Zevin

I rated it 5 out of 5 stars.

Overview: If Naomi had picked tails, she would have won the coin toss. She wouldn’t have had to go back for the yearbook camera, and she wouldn’t have hit her head on the steps. She wouldn’t have woken up in an ambulance with amnesia. She certainly would have remembered her boyfriend, Ace. She might even have remembered why she fell in love with him in the first place. She would understand why her best friend, Will, keeps calling her “Chief.” She’d know about her mom’s new family. She’d know about her dad’s fiancée. She never would have met James, the boy with the questionable past and the even fuzzier future, who tells her he once wanted to kiss her. She wouldn’t have wanted to kiss him back.

But Naomi picked heads.

Review: This was a reread of one of my high school faves that survived my move to Seattle (I gave away almost about all of my books). Even about 5-6 years later, I still loved this one. I was shocked when I looked it up on Goodreads. How could the rating be 3.71? It was 5 all the way for me.

Here's the thing, you don't know what to expect when you pick up the book. You don't really know how the story's going to turn out. Because of that, I enjoyed it immensely. You get to know this main character as she discovers herself which I found really interesting. Zevin also does an amazing job at characterization and illustrating their flaws. Especially with James. I have to say, he was the pivotal point of the novel for me, even though he was only in one third of the book (Zevin, you should do a book with James as a MC, I'm curious to know how he'd end up).

I didn't agree with the ending, but then again it isn't my story. I still respected the writing and saw the logic of how it came to be. The pacing throughout was excellent. I read it all in one sitting (both times I read it), and I wouldn't mind reading it all over again.