Saving June by Hannah Harrington

‘If she’d waited less than two weeks, she’d be June who died in June. But I guess my sister didn’t consider that.’

Harper Scott’s older sister has always been the perfect one so when June takes her own life a week before her high school graduation, sixteen-year-old Harper is devastated. Everyone’s sorry, but no one can explain why.

When her divorcing parents decide to split her sister’s ashes into his-and-her urns, Harper takes matters into her own hands. She’ll steal the ashes and drive cross-country with her best friend, Laney, to the one place June always dreamed of going California.

Enter Jake Tolan. He’s a boy with a bad attitude, a classic-rock obsession and nothing in common with Harper’s sister. But Jake had a connection with June, and when he insists on joining them, Harper’s just desperate enough to let him. With his alternately charming and infuriating demeanour and his belief that music can see you through anything, he might be exactly what she needs.

Except June wasn’t the only one hiding something. Jake’s keeping a secret that has the power to turn Harper’s life upside down again.


Judging from the Aussie cover (which is gorgeous) and the blurb I expected Saving June to be a melancholic (perhaps whimsical) novel exploring grief/sisterhood & bad boys ;) I thought it may be a rainy-day comfort read. But it was so much more than that. 

SAVING JUNE opens with Harper at her sisters wake ~ and the tone is pitch perfect for that kind of startled frozen grief ~ and yet Harrington had me grinning (grinning! in the aftermath of a funeral) multiple times before the chapter was through, even alongside that gorgeously portrayed ache. 

That first chapter pretty much sets the tone for the book ~ which continues to grow in it’s awesomeness right until the very end. I found SAVING JUNE absolutely refreshing and completely addictive. It’s funky and full of life even as it explores darker themes. 

It reads so effortlessly ~ like Harrington is very comfortable with her prose, characters and their world. I love lines of prose that make you stop and think, sentiments worded so perfectly that you find little epiphanies about the most ordinary of things (I found that here). Also ~ genius one-liners that made me ache/grin/pause/sigh or all of the above. 

I am crazy-in-love with the grin-worthy and whip-smart dialogue, that easy banter that comes from people being stuck on a road trip together and getting overly bold and familiar. This book easily catches a sense of camaraderie between it’s characters that make it easy for a reader to slip in alongside them and feel as if you are there. 

The romantic sub-plot (you guys!) unfolded exactly how I love: it starts off brilliantly antagonistic between Harper and Jake (love their first three meetings) and the romantic tension between them burns throughout the novel. Harrington shows such restraint in shaping their relationship and it really pays off. It’s incredibly sexy watching the love/hate/annoyance/attraction thing and even sexier when, well, when things turn sexy :D 

The thing about this book is at first glance you can probably find a lot of cliched threads: the (better, smarter) sister who committed suicide, a road trip with a mysterious bad boy, characters who struggle with their parents and pasts and futures. But Harrington blitzes pass cliche-land with her nuanced characters that are explored in layers, unfolding piece by piece. SAVING JUNE has so much heart, it’s sad in parts but mostly captures that whole YA thing of finding your place in the world. It has hope and I smiled, grinned and sighed, like, a lot, considering the premise of the book O.o 

There are also random cool things that make road trip books so much fun. For eg: Fridgehenge (!) 

There are a few things that niggled at the end and occasionally the pacing lulls (not in terms of my interest in reading, oh my gosh I couldn’t put it down, but perhaps in terms of plot) and some of the banter with other characters can occasionally be too smart (in that John-Green-I-am-cool-kind-of-way ~ but only with a few minor-blip characters) but none of this detracted from insanely loving every minute of this. 


Recommended: for an upper YA vibe, road-trip, music filled, complete swoon-worthy read ~ SAVING JUNE is absolutely delivers. It's in my top three reads so far this year. I've tried not to rave (too much) in my review but - you guys - I am crazy-in-love with this book <3


(it is M rated in parts ~ so for mature readers ...)


Saving June @ goodreads

US cover

Saving June was released in Australia last month (available now!) ~ but will not be out in the US until November 29 this year (no idea why!!? ~ it is an American author). It is a YA debut (And I will auto-buy whatever Hannah Harrington writes next ;)

Which cover do you like best? 

p.s. I am still swooning ;) <3

Confession: books I own but have not read...

Guys ~ it's time to confess.

I am oh-so-curious about all the books people own but have not read. About book lovers and their toppling TBR piles. Where do all the books come from? Why we keep accumulating more?  How long do they sit neglected on our shelves? O.o

I personally feel flustered and slightly out-of-control when my to-read book pile starts exploding. I don't know why. I guess I start to look at those books as something on my to-do list rather than a leisurely option: that feeling of finishing one book and charging straight on to the next.

My TBR pile ('To Be Read' ~ books I have sitting on my shelf) currently has 18 books in it (the most I have ever had is 28 ~ the least being zero). Here's a peek @ what's sitting on my shelf (books that belong to me) and where I got it from:

Bought second hand in April ($1 a book) from the Coffs Harbour Rotary Book Fair:

Books I swapped with other Aussie buds 

(HUGE fan of passing my books on in exchange for others...):

Books received as gifts (THANK YOU!):

Books I purchased :)

For review: currently ZERO (phew!)

18 books feels like a lot to me but I know other people have more. I use my library heaps too, which means I can ignore my own books for a while in favour of my library ones. I often spend my reading time re-reading favourites (I am such a fan of hanging out with my fave literary character/friends and returning to my comfort reads). Still ~ I often feel greedy and lust after more books (especially when new releases come out).

I would LOVE to know how many books you own that you have not read... 

~ and where do they all come from? 

~ and do you regularly lust after books even though there are books still sitting on your shelves?

~ and how long has your longest unread book been sitting on your shelf?

~ do you feel sheepish about your TBR (is it a secret, like TBR Anonymous, haha)?

~ do you love having a huge TBR or prefer a small one?

~ or anything at all you want to tell me about your TBR :D

(I have had CHAINS by Laurie Halse Anderson since January this year ~ it has been ignored for 6 months (!) ~ it's my longest ignored book on my shelves)

ALSO: which book out of my TBR would you read next if you were me? 

(I tend to choose depending on the mood I'm in. 

Occasionally am motivated by guilt ~ from neglecting a book for too long, LOL)

Alaska by Sue Saliba

mia's heart made a sound that no one heard except for mia
late one night when she woke from dreams into darkness.
ethan was asleep beside her, and em was a forest away.
outside it was night and dark and alaska.the sky was upside down.

When Mia follows her sister halfway across the world to Alaska, she discovers that love can be found in the most unexpected and beautiful of places. But can Mia find the courage to follow her heart in Alaska? And what if the one you love is not all that you wish them to be?

A lyrical new novel from the winner of the 2009 Victorian Premier's Literary Award for Young Adult Fiction with something in the world called love.

The image of ALASKA doesn't do the physical book justice. It's stunning in the flesh ~ a shimmery bronze/gold colour that catches the light. <3

alaska is a gorgeous, gorgeous book. it's breathless and aching and it completely captures that swirl of coming-of-age emotions. the fear and hope and vulnerability we all feel. the fleeting moments of deep happiness pitched against the uncertainties of the world and your place in it.


it's a contemp but written in such a lyrical way that it occasionally has an other-worldy vibe: it's whimsical. sue saliba's prose is stunning ~ she catches sentiments in the most aching of ways. the story washes over you, pulls you in, makes you gasp and sigh.

it was as if she was on the cusp of herself, her edges, and she might soon fall in. (p 172)

it's not written traditionally. there are no capital letters. there's snippets of scenes and snatches of dialogue. the narrative flows along, mostly linear, but at times swirling back through time.


i loved, adored and ached for mia. looking at the world through her eyes was stunning. she's carving out her place in the world: 

whether he (ethan) knew it or not, she was casting him in a role, building a story around him, creating a tone. it was what she'd done for herself: mia, the devoted sister of em; mia, the emotional daughter of her alcoholic mother. what particular places she inhabited. what awful territory she guarded. (p16)

plot-wise i will not spoil it for you ~ but mia stumbles across things she cannot ignore. things that stir her and shape her and give her courage to find what she believes in: 

suddenly mia wanted to stop, to reverse things. to walk back to the door and the time that she had just slipped through it, that moment. but she couldn't. something else was saying go, go deeper into what is here. right here with you. 

she paused. she thought of the night-time sky. it was beautiful and terrifying all at once, seductive like standing on the edge of a truth where everything thought impossible was instantly and completely available. she moved forward. (p 61)

mia is brave and resilient. she's running away from melbourne and her past but also trying to come to terms with it. she falls in love with ethan, in his twenties, who feels like an extension of herself, but he is also evasive and maybe not at all who she needs him to be.

there they lay, hours later, on the floor not far from the table but amongst blankets and cushion that ethan had dragged from the nearby couch. mia turned her head to look through the long window. she saw the road she had travelled along in the distance. she saw ice against the ground and the sunlight shining on it and she smiled at the strange combination of things. how just at that moment, as she looked out, with the comfort of ethan beside her, she could accept the unlikeliness of the world. (p 76)

i also keenly felt the relationship between mia and her mum. all that it was and is and all that mia wished it to be. the issue of her mum's illness was captured so deftly. in so few words there are so many shades of grey. 


the setting of alaska is breathtaking. the forest is alive, it feels magical. it's right at the heartbeat of the novel.

you can't have beauty without danger. mia's words had sprung from somewhere covered over in her, whispered alive by the forest. you can't have life and absolute safety. (p92)

i could quote this entire book. it's sentiments, the language. this is a book with a soul. one more passage i loved for it's simplicity and it's heartbeat and for that sense of life and hope and the future and everything in between:

that night she lay beside ethan,
mia's heart made a soundthat no one else heard. 

she was here in alaska, with ethan, with em. safe from certain parts of the world and certain parts of herself.

 here - if she chose - was a certain story.

or she could listen to another way. 

outside it was night and dark and the sky was upside down. the forest called to her. why had she come? what was it that a world so remote had to tell her. 

it wasn't hard to know. not now. (p 182)

recommended: books like alaska make me fiercely proud of the aussie authors who write for our teens. this book is brave and true and full of heart and soul.


it's for fans of Jaclyn Moriarty's whimsical and soulful characters (think elizabeth clarry).


it's for fans of sonya hartnett's astounding prose and mystical stories.


it's for fans of verse novels ~ with it's lilting and lyrical prose. 


i completely loved alaska

Alaska @ Penguin Australia

Alaska @ goodreads

interview with Sue Saliba @ Between the Lines

Alaska's Aussie release date is June 27 :D

click on image to see in detail <3

the full jacket spread is gorgeous. love how even the barcode is incorporated into the tree stump. i think we'll be seeing this cover nominated for design awards <3

thank you to Penguin Australia for this review copy

hard cover V paperback #4

hard cover verse paperback is a sporadic feature @ inkcrush

all links for blurbs, etc, go to goodreads

the four books featured today are all currently available in hard cover and pre-orderable in paperback.

hard cover                               paperback 

Fat Cat by Robin Brande

Both of these are conceptually awesome. There's been a lot of thought into integrating the title to match the theme. I LOVE the skinny apple on the paperback.

My favourite? hard cover. 

I can't go past that electric shiny purple of the hard cover. It really grabs my attention <3

hard cover                                         paperback

The Cardturner by Louis Sachar

Hard cover: I love it. It's already got a unique vibe going on ~ kind of like a poster for a funky indie film. LOVE the spade in the title and the cleverness of the tagline. The use of white space is also really satisfying for some reason.

Paperback: I love this too. It's bold and vibrant and still has an off-beat feel about it. The colours work so well together and are really streamlined. LOVE the whale on the sign, the burn-out tracks and the card on the ground.

My favourite: ahh, I'm torn. Absolutely undecided. I think both are excellent covers

hard cover                              paperback

She's So Dead To Us by Kieran Scott

hard cover: While the colours are well matched and the cut necklace is clearly symbolic, I cannot say this cover does much for me. The cut pearls look... awkward.  

paperback: I don't like this one either although I think it probably has better teen appeal than the hard cover. The bodies are headless (!) in a choppy way,  and the whole scene just looks so posed. from the girls leg caught at a weird angle to the guy wearing that suit. 

My favourite: sorry ~ I'm not really liking either :( 

bonus: UK original cover and the (US) sequel cover: 

you can see how the US sequel matches the new paperback theme. 

I like the UK one the best out of them all...

hard cover                              paperback

Finnikin of the Rock by Melina Marchetta

the new US paperback is an atmospheric blend of the US hard cover and the Aussie cover: -->

My favourite: the paperback. I think it's absolutely mesmerising ~ Finnikin's eyes are the focal point and then my eyes stray to the smoky background and ominous branches. 

Which covers do you love the most?

Have a particular favourite?

xx Nomes

Room by Emma Donohue

The story of a mother, her son, a locked room and the outside world

Jack is five and, like any little boy, excited at the prospect of presents and cake. He's looking forward to telling his friends it's his birthday, too. But although Jack is a normal child in many ways – loving, funny, bright, full of energy and questions – his upbringing is far from ordinary: Jack's entire life has been spent in a single room that measures just 12 feet by 12 feet; as far as he's concerned, Room is the entire world.

He shares this world with his mother, with Plant, and tiny Mouse (though Ma isn't a fan and throws a book at Mouse when she sees him). There's TV too, of course – and the cartoon characters he thinks of as his friends – but Jack knows that nothing else he sees on the screen is real. Old Nick, on the other hand, is all too real, but only visits at night – like a bat – when Jack is meant to be asleep and hidden safely in Wardrobe. And only Old Nick has the code to Door, which is otherwise locked...

Told in Jack's voice, Room is the story of a mother's love for her son, and of a young boy's innocence (from publisher's site).

Have you guys heard of ROOM? It has such a hauntingly gorgeous evocative cover and has won so many awards since it's August 2010 release.

The premise of Room is simple:

ROOM is the story of a five-year-old called Jack, who lives in a single room with his Ma and has never been outside. When he turns five, he starts to ask questions, and his mother reveals to him that there is a world outside. Told entirely in Jack’s voice, ROOM is no horror story or tearjerker, but a celebration of resilience and the love between parent and child. (from author's site)

 ~ and while the premise may be nothing entirely new, I can honestly say I have never read another book like it.(Read the first chapter @ Amazon for a taste of the prose).

With the book being told from Jack's five-year old POV it puts a whole new slant on the tale ~ while the subject matter may imply it's a suspense thriller, it doesn't read like it at all. There are undertones of the horror of the situation (that we, as readers, bring to the book, reading between the lines) but as Jack narrates the book has an almost fairytale, other-worldly quality to it. (his universe is the room ~ and simple objects become proper nouns, Door, Bed, Fork, etc, are like characters in the story) His Room is an adventure to him ~ his days fascinating one day after another, he's ignorant that he is a captive. It's a conceptually bold idea and makes for utterly compelling reading.

Jack's a funny kid. He's like this odd cross between an alien visitor, regular boy-child and mini Dalai Lama with a wise old soul, haha.

It took me a few pages to adjust to the narration and slip into the rhythm of the story ~ but once I did I was hooked and found ROOM to be two-am-in-the-morning-unputdownable. Even where it occasionally lulled in the pacing/suspense I was so hooked I wanted to see what was going to happen.

ROOM is a perfect book for a book club. It's unique, additive and oh-my-gosh psychologically head-spin-ny. Plot-wise I don't want to give anything away but it's a little bit The Jungle Book-esque. (and I love the psychological exploration)

I wish I had read this with my book club because I have an overflowing head full of stuff to discuss. I am torn about this book.

It is one of the most compelling, fascinating and unique books I have read. I gulped it up and was completely absorbed. I'm glad I read it and it was a startling and absorbing reading experience

BUT

I was left buzzing with points of discussion.

A little miffed and incredulous at the mid-point deus ex-machina (!).

I thought the second half was equally compelling and frustrating. I loved the themes in the second half but felt they were occasionally too obvious (as if the author had fallen a bit out of the story and into showcasing some thoughts on modern society/the human condition). In parts it felt rushed and Jack's POV overly wise and insightful.

The two halves of the book were distinctly different and I'm not sure how well they meshed together? It made me feel a touch dizzy, somehow.

 I loved reading ABOUT the characters but I am not sure I really CARED for them (although ~ it makes me think, do I need to care about characters to enjoy a book? Evidently not as I did fly turbo-charged through ROOM).

The ending niggled at me (as in, what ending (!?) it kind of petered out...). I'm a little unsure why Jack had such a funky dialect? ~ all twisty grammar (which I did enjoy to read ~ very cute and had a perfect kind of literary rhythm). But why did he talk like that? O.o

And I could have a good long chat with you over a hot chocolate about a dozen things that got me scratching my head/pondering life kind of stuff ~ but I won't for spoilers...

IN CONCLUSION

It was a wild, utterly unique reading experience. I loved reading it. I got all hot and bothered by it. And am insanely impressed at how brave this book is. It's really something different and no wonder it has people buzzing and it's being nominated for all kinds of prestigious awards.

Recommended:If you're looking for something creative and original, something to captivate you, make you think and a story to become absorbed in CHECK IT OUT. It's a little different and it may have you bewildered in parts (let me know what you think!) but overall it's an awesome reading experience for all ages, hey.

(If you struggle at the beginning, I recommend giving it 30 pages or so to get used to the narration style ~ after that you'll be hooked and not even notice it. I ended up liking the narration as one of my stand-out fave things about the book :)

Room @ Pan Macmillan
Emma Donohue's website
Room @ goodreads

A few of my favourite international covers:

Have you read Room?

Are you intrigued?

Which cover do you love the most? 

(they are all pretty stand-out-ish)

Thanks to Pan Macmillan Australia for this startling and absorbing review copy

AND thank you all who entered my Elizabeth Scott STEALING HEAVEN giveaway :D

The random.org winner was 

Michelle of See Michelle Read :)

Burn Bright by Marianne de Pierres

Into a world of wild secrets and deadly pleasures comes a girl whose innocence may be her greatest strength.

In Ixion music and party are our only beliefs. Darkness is our comfort. We have few rules but they are absolute . . .

Retra doesn’t want to go to Ixion, the island of ever-night, ever-youth and never-sleep. Retra is a Seal – sealed minds, sealed community. She doesn’t crave parties and pleasure, experience and freedom.

But her brother Joel left for Ixion two years ago, and Retra is determined to find him. Braving the intense pain of her obedience strip to escape the only home she’s ever known, Retra stows away on the barge that will take her to her brother.

When she can’t find Joel, Retra finds herself drawn deeper into the intoxicating world of Ixion. Come to me, whispers a voice in her head. Who are the Ripers, the mysterious guardians of Ixion? What are the Night Creatures Retra can see in the shadows? And what happens to those who grow too old for Ixion?

Retra will find that Ixion has its pleasures, but its secrets are deadly. Will friendship, and the creation of an eternal bond with a Riper, be enough to save her from the darkness?

Listen well, baby bats. Burn bright, but do not stray from the paths. Remember, when you live in a place of darkness you also live with creatures of the dark.


Guys, I was going to try and review this semi-professionally without all the gushing. But I can't seem to help it. I seriously LOVED this book.


In a YA market fast becoming saturated in dystopia's BURN BRIGHT shines out in the crowd. It's a dystopian tale with splashes of sci-fi. It is, in fact, so vibrant and unique and convincing that it makes me feel embarrassed for other recent (often flailing romantic) YA dystopia's. It is fantastically original, creepy, riveting and atmospheric. I can honestly say BURN BRIGHT is unlike any book I have ever read = complete WOW experience.

de Pierres makes it easy to sink into a complex world: her prose is lush and rich, evoking vibrant imagery. She doesn't patronise her readers with an overabundance of explanations or bore us with oodles of backstory: she just throws us into the story along with Retra. Not everything instantly makes sense or is explained away and I think this is a strength ~ it truly made me feel as if I was submerged 100% into the story along with Retra.


I went into it not knowing much apart from the blurb and had no idea what to expect. It's hard to give you a feel of this evocative book in such a short review so rather than run down a synopsis I prefer just to share how brilliant I thought it was and give a little teaser: 


There's pirates and gangs and secret passages and funky/strange pills and dark creatures. 
There's parties and a hot musician and mysterious creepy happenings. 
There's a world bigger than Ixion, which skitters on the horizon, with even bigger dystopian themes. 
It's ominous and daring and spectacular. 
LOVED the climax where some of the islands secrets are revealed ~ while leaving me craving more. 


I LOVED THIS:  It's dark and wild, unpredictable and somehow enchanting. I rated it the full FIVE STARS over on goodreads as for me it was a definite 5 star reading experience. I found it unputdownable, sensory rich and utterly absorbing. It had been a while since I have been so pulled into someone else's story. I loved being in Retra's world and can't wait to return with the sequel.

Recommended: I very nearly missed out on reading this by thinking it wasn't a "me book." I thought it may be too paranormal-ish, too hedonistic (LOL) or too fantastical ~ GUYS ~ I know it may not be raved about by everyone but if you're in a reading slump or looking for a completely addictive absorbing experience I absolutely recommend Burn Bright. It's truly original and you can completely tell the author loves her world and characters. Brilliant stuff ~ it's in my top ten reads so far this year (and I stayed up past 2am trying to read it in one big gulping go)

I also think it would make one wild movie on the big screen!

Listen well, baby bats. Burn bright, but do not stray from the paths. Remember, when you live in a place of darkness you also live with creatures of the dark.

Burn Bright @ goodreads
Burn Bright website (absolutely gorgeous artwork ~ check it out!)
Burn Bright @ Random House Australia

The trailer is gorgeous <3

Burn Bright is the first book in the Night Creatures trilogy.

Book #2 Angel Arias will be released in Australia in November this year.

Angel Arias @ goodreads

(also, shout out to another awesome Aussie YA and fingers crossed it gets picked up by an international publisher)

Froi of the Exiles by Melina Marchetta

Guys ~ not long now until Melina Marchetta's sequel to Finnikin of the Rock is released in Australia!

and it has a gorgeous, gorgeous cover:

wOOT wOOT!

Couldn't you just stare at it all day?

Isn't it stunning? The colours and the details are striking ~ the swirls and the splatters and patterns with the light and shade. Froi is shirtless (!) and I love his inked back. Love the city in the background and the scope of this design. It looks textured. Seriously, an awesome cover like this only has me even more pumped for FROI . 

Froi of the Exiles @ Penguin Australia (release date October 3)

If you haven't read FINNIKIN yet I absolutely recommend it as a mesmerising read: sorrowful and hopeful and richly imagined. Anything Marchetta writes is pure magic

AND here's the Aussie cover of #1 in the Lumatere Chronicles FINNIKIN OF THE ROCK. They match beautifully don't they? Can't wait to have them sitting on my shelf together :D

I love our FINNIKIN cover too :)

(no idea when this book is out internationally ~ sorry guys :)