1. The Dark Prophecy (The Trials of Apollo #2) by Rick Riordan 

I have been engulfed in the Percy Jackson World for almost two years now. I love the story lines created by Riordan and how the characters really grow up with the reader. That being said, The Trials of Apollo series is not my favorite spin off. The second book in the series picks up with Apollo, being sent as a human to Earth as punishment from presumably Zeus, to continue the search for the next Oracle with Meg. I preferred the first novel to The Dark Prophecy, but it was still an enjoyable read. It was cute and fun, but there was nothing defining about it.

Rating: 3.5/5

2. Timequake by Kurt Vonnegut

Kurt Vonnegut’s semi-autobiography was a Christmas gift to me last month. I was thrilled to be given this, because Vonnegut is one of my favorite authors. The book was a wonderfully witty commentary on free will and events of Vonnegut’s life into the 1990s. I would recommend this read to anyone who enjoys classic dystopian fiction, such as Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury.

Rating 5/5 

3. New Moon (The Twilight Saga #2) by Stephanie Meyer

I have been told that I should be embarrassed that this is the first time I am reading the Twilight Saga, but I doubt my mother would have let me read this in fifth grade when I was going through my fantasy phase. These books are my guilty reads, especially since I am already familiar with the basic plot points from the countless times I have seen the movies. I liked the writing style of this book more than the first. Meyer did a phenomenal job in making you feel Bella’s emptiness upon Edward leaving Forks, Washington. However, like all the books in this series, there needs to be a big trigger warning for how toxic every relationship in this book is, specifically Bella and Edward. I really wish Meyer could have given Bella her own book with this plot. Jacob’s plot line in New Moon took away a good chance for Bella to grow without a magical love interest.

Rating: 3/5

4. Turtles All the Way down by John Green 

I really was not expecting to enjoy this novel as much as I did. I am most familiar with the John Green from Crash Course and had only ever read one or two of his books before, so I was really shocked with how enveloped in this plot I quickly became. This novel had the perfect amount of mystery and romance to keep me invested in the angsty teenage love as well as the ongoing disappearance of the town’s millionaire. This was a great young adult read.

Rating: 4/5

5. We Were Liars by E. Lockhart 

I do not understand the hype around this novel at all. I am pretty sure I found this read on the BookTok side of TikTok and the 3.8 star average on Goodreads made me think that I would love this plot. I hated this novel. The writing was so pretentious and the lead up to the ending was boring. I would not recommend this novel to anyone.

Rating: 2/5

6. The Bookworm Crush by Lisa Brown Roberts 

There is nothing inherently wrong with this romance novel, but there is also nothing I specifically enjoyed about this plot. It is a basic childhood crush to friends to lovers. It was just a fluff read.

Rating: 2.5/5

7. Eclipse (The Twilight Saga #3) by Stephanie Meyer 

Similarly to New Moon, I cannot stand Bella and Edward’s relationship. They became more toxic in this book, especially with Edward’s ultimatum to Bella, concerning their relationship and him forcing her to marry him when she’s only 18. None of the characters are making healthy decisions — none of the parents seem to be appropriately handling the situation. As much as I want to root for them, I’m having a really hard time liking any of the characters.

Rating: 3/5

8. One of Us is Lying by Karen M. McManus 

Going into this book, I had no idea what the real plot line was. I knew that it was kind of a breakfast club spoof, and it was a murder mystery. I was so surprised by this novel — it was so good. I very rarely give books five stars, but this earned every single star. I’ve already recommended it to you as many people will listen. The plot twist is amazing; the characters are phenomenal — the development is so good. I never knew what was going to happen next.

Rating: 5/5

9. One of Us is Next (One of Us is Lying #2) -Karen M. McManus 

I didn’t really think that the sequel to One of Us is Lying would be this good, but it really was. It wasn’t quite five star worthy, and it definitely wasn’t as good as the first book. The plot lines were great, and I still enjoyed all the characters and romances. The mystery was great, and I never knew what was going to happen again. There was also another phenomenal twist. The author does a phenomenal job developing a plot line that is interesting and characters that are lovable, even with their flaws and mistakes.

Rating: 4/5

10. Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover 

I have previously read two Colleen Hoover books, and for her genre, they were really well written and thought out. She always has some kind of weird twist at the end, but you know that it’s coming. I think the idea of having a guarded male lead that puts up romantic walls is a bit overused, but the reasoning that Hoover used for Miles’ story and the way that she did the dual perspective was really good. The writing style made you feel for both sides of the story. It was the first book to make me cry in a long time.

Rating: 4.5/5