SUMMARY: august🎒

I'm posting this at the very last minute rip but I've been so busy! Senior year is lowkey killing me (even though it's not that much work, I'm just stressed), so I've been behind on some things. but here's the summary for august!

#waitingonwednesday: american panda

I am so excited for American Panda by Gloria Chao to come out!! It's YA, but it's set in college, and I am really close (too close, one might say) to being in this situation. A YA book set in college is pretty rare too, so if you've been looking for that, add this to your TBR list! It comes out February 6, 2018, and I'm counting down the days.

REVIEW: Jane, Unlimited by Kristin Cashore

**I received an ARC thanks to Shenwei (@theshenners), thank you again!! This review is my own opinion, and I was not compensated in any way for it.

Jane, Unlimited by Kristin Cashore

Release Date: September 19, 2017

My Rating: 4.25 stars

Summary: If you could change your story, would you?

Jane has lived a mostly ordinary life, raised by her recently deceased aunt Magnolia, whom she counted on to turn life into an adventure. Without Aunt Magnolia, Jane is directionless. Then an old acquaintance, the glamorous and capricious Kiran Thrash, blows back into Jane’s life and invites her to a gala at the Thrashes’ extravagant island mansion called Tu Reviens. Jane remembers her aunt telling her: “If anyone ever invites you to Tu Reviens, promise me that you’ll go.”

What Jane doesn’t know is that at Tu Reviens her story will change; the house will offer her five choices that could ultimately determine the course of her untethered life. But every choice comes with a price. She might fall in love, she might lose her life, she might come face-to-face with herself. At Tu Reviens, anything is possible.

MINI-REVIEWS: The Conspiracy of Us Series by Maggie Hall

THE CONSPIRACY OF US trilogy by Maggie Hall

SUMMARY: july💛

sooo i start school in less than a month, and i'm kind of freaking out bc of college applications and stuff but anyway i'm going to try to schedule posts so they'll be up regularly instead of randomly whenever i have time

REVIEW: Forest of a Thousand Lanterns by Julie C. Dao

**I received this ARC from a third-party giveaway. In no way was I compensated for this review, and these are my honest opinions.**

Forest of a Thousand Lanterns by Julie C. Dao

Release Date: October 10, 2017

My Rating: 4.5 stars

Summary: An East Asian fantasy reimagining of The Evil Queen legend about one peasant girl's quest to become Empress--and the darkness she must unleash to achieve her destiny.

Eighteen-year-old Xifeng is beautiful. The stars say she is destined for greatness, that she is meant to be Empress of Feng Lu. But only if she embraces the darkness within her. Growing up as a peasant in a forgotten village on the edge of the map, Xifeng longs to fulfill the destiny promised to her by her cruel aunt, the witch Guma, who has read the cards and seen glimmers of Xifeng's majestic future. But is the price of the throne too high?

Because in order to achieve greatness, she must spurn the young man who loves her and exploit the callous magic that runs through her veins--sorcery fueled by eating the hearts of the recently killed. For the god who has sent her on this journey will not be satisfied until his power is absolute.

REVIEW: Starfish by Akemi Dawn Bowman

**I received an ARC from the publisher (thank you, Simon Teen!). These are my honest opinions, and in no way was I compensated for this review.**

Starfish by Akemi Dawn Bowman

Release Date: September 26, 2017

My Rating: 4.5 stars

Summary: A half-Japanese teen grapples with social anxiety and her narcissist mother in the wake of a crushing rejection from art school in this debut novel.

Kiko Himura has always had a hard time saying exactly what she’s thinking. With a mother who makes her feel unremarkable and a half-Japanese heritage she doesn’t quite understand, Kiko prefers to keep her head down, certain that once she makes it into her dream art school, Prism, her real life will begin.

But then Kiko doesn’t get into Prism, at the same time her abusive uncle moves back in with her family. So when she receives an invitation from her childhood friend to leave her small town and tour art schools on the west coast, Kiko jumps at the opportunity in spite of the anxieties and fears that attempt to hold her back. And now that she is finally free to be her own person outside the constricting walls of her home life, Kiko learns life-changing truths about herself, her past, and how to be brave.

From debut author Akemi Dawn Bowman comes a luminous, heartbreaking story of identity, family, and the beauty that emerges when we embrace our true selves.

A William C. Morris Award Finalist; A New York Public Library Best Book for Teens of 2017; A Junior Library Guild Selection