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YOU BELONG HERE BY SARA PHOEBE MILLER & MORGAN BEEM // blog tour book feature: a gorgeous ya graphic novel that’ll punch you in the gut!
I’m on fire just a little bit and I kinda like it? Anyways, very excitied for my stop and the final stop of the tour celebrating You Belong Here! Let’s get into it 🙂 Title: You Belong HereAuthor: Sara Phoebe MillerIllustrator: Morgan BeemPage count: 256Date published: 4 March 2025Genre: Young Adult contemporary 💜 Synopsis: A young adult graphic novel following Essie through heartbreak, star-crossed romance, teen drama, and the question on every high-school senior’s lips: where do I belong? It’s the first day of senior year and seventeen-year-old Essie Rosen is already over it. Her best friend went off to college and barely responds to her texts, her brother’s on the other side of the country in rehab, every conversation with her mom becomes a fight, and her long-term boyfriend, Bruno, feels weirdly distant. Essie’s counting down the days until she can escape her Long Island hometown and join her bff at NYU, where she’s SURE she’ll get into the acting program she’s dreamed about for years. But when Essie gets dumped AND botches her college audition, her entire trajectory changes. Instead of doing community theater, she ends up slumming it in the school play, where she’s cast opposite the…
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WHEN YOU GET THE CHANCE BY EMMA LORD // spoiler-free book review: need a YA contemporary romance that’s also a mamma mia retelling with rivals to lovers AND is set in NYC? i got you.
In the wise words of Lizzo, IT’S ABOUT DAMN TIME,,, Let us not waste any more of that and dive right into it! Title: When You Get The ChanceAuthor: Emma LordPage count: 320Date published: 4 January 2022Genre: YA contemporary romance 🎤 Synopsis: Nothing will get in the way of Millie Price’s dream to become a Broadway star. Not her lovable but super-introverted dad, who after raising Millie alone, doesn’t want to watch her leave home to pursue her dream. Not her pesky and ongoing drama club rival, Oliver, who is the very definition of Simmering Romantic Tension. And not the “Millie Moods,” the feelings of intense emotion that threaten to overwhelm, always at maddeningly inconvenient times. Millie needs an ally. And when a left-open browser brings Millie to her dad’s embarrassingly moody LiveJournal from 2003, Millie knows just what to do. She’s going to find her mom. There’s Steph, a still-aspiring stage actress and receptionist at a talent agency. There’s Farrah, ethereal dance teacher who clearly doesn’t have the two left feet Millie has. And Beth, the chipper and sweet stage enthusiast with an equally exuberant fifteen-year-old daughter (A possible sister?! This is getting out of hand). But how can…
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JANUARY & FEBRUARY RECAP // somehow i read 15 books ft. graphic novel mania, readalongs, lots of new books & back to uni
It’s the way I forgot to post my January until halfway through February and decided another two weeks was worth waiting. I mean what else is new here? Ruby Rae Reads: perpetually late to everything Lmao love that for me Anyway, I have lots to talk about, so let’s jump right in! Seven Percent of Ro Devereux by Ellen O’Clover {★★★★★}: started off the year strong with this absolutely stunning YA debut contemporary romance ugh it was SO SO SO GOOD!!!! Absolutely everything I ever wanted from this book about creating an app, familial tension, angsty emotions and childhood friends to enemies to lovers. It was *chef’s kiss* and you all need to read it RIGHT THIS SECOND!!!! Big thanks to the author for sending me an eARC via Netgalley, click here for my GR review <3<3<3 Heartstopper Volume 1 by Alice Oseman {★★★★½}: decided to get off my butt and finally read these and ugh I had the bestest day literally just reading all of these comics. A stunning first instalment and I do love how accurate the show is. It’s kind of scary. Big thanks to Pan MacMillan SA for the review copy xoxoxo Heartstopper Volume 2 by…
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FOUL LADY FORTUNE BY CHLOE GONG // book talk: a show-stopping spectacular 1930s shanghai adventure that blew my mind into a million pieces and i need the next book right now!!!
IT HAS BEEN 84 YEARS AND I HAVE FINALLY READ THIS FREAKING BOOK ROUND OF APPLAUSE FOLKS It’s honestly embarrassing it’s taken me this long. Like truly. Hate myself for that. But I finally finished it and off its the way this book FINISHED ME!!!!!!!! I shall now cry about it for eternity,,, Title: Foul Lady FortuneSeries: Secrets of Shanghai book #3Author: Chloe GongPage count: 528Date published: 27 September 2022Genre: Young Adult historical fiction 💀 Synopsis: It’s 1931 in Shanghai, and the stage is set for a new decade of intrigue. Four years ago, Rosalind Lang was brought back from the brink of death, but the strange experiment that saved her also stopped her from sleeping and aging—and allows her to heal from any wound. In short, Rosalind cannot die. Now, desperate for redemption from her traitorous past, she uses her abilities as an assassin for her country. Code name: Fortune. But when the Japanese Imperial Army begins its invasion march, Rosalind’s mission pivots. A series of murders is causing unrest in Shanghai, and the Japanese are under suspicion. Rosalind’s new orders are to infiltrate foreign society and identify the culprits behind the terror plot before more of her people…
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POPULAR BOOKTOK BOOKS I RECOMMEND // 10 viral tiktok books i actually like that you could read if you want
I don’t know what I’m doing today but I am unhinged and we’re just rolling with it. Spur of the moment decisions over at Ruby Rae Reads today *hides* I could be here talking about the worst BookTok books because I know there are many but I don’t want to put myself through that amount of pain. Very rarely will you catch me pushing through god-awful books and oof I know which ones those are. Avoiding them like the plague in this household. Anyways, I shan’t waste time on the opinions I have concerning this platform because frankly, I don’t know what I would say. It has been both very amusing watching books grow on TikTok whilst also being really cool for the book industry. So there are my two cents, maybe I’ll come back for a discussion? This post is just going to discuss books I rated basically higher than 3 stars. Some are not amazing and a few by authors I wouldn’t support anymore, but I wanted to talk about. Let’s just get into the books. There are more than I anticipated so I’ll be as brief as possible! CONTEMPORARY — It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover:…
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INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR ELLEN O’CLOVER // chatting with debut author of Seven Percent of Ro Devereux aka my first favourite of the year on release day
So so excited about today’s post so I can yell about this wonderful book that you all nee to read RIGHT THIS SECOND!!! We have a very special guest so why I shut up and just get started? Big thanks to Harper Teen and the author for gifting me with an eARCof Seven Percent of Ro Devereux via Netgalley! Title: Seven Percent of Ro DevereuxAuthor: Ellen O’ CloverPage count: 320Date published: 17 January 2023Genre: Young adult contemporary romance 📱 Synopsis: Ro Devereux can predict your future. Or, at least, the app she built for her senior project can. Working with her neighbor, a retired behavioral scientist, Ro created an app called MASH, designed around the classic game Mansion Apartment Shack House, that can predict a person’s future with 93% accuracy. The app will even match users with their soul mates. Though it was only supposed to be a class project, MASH quickly takes off and gains the attention of tech investors. Ro’s dream is to work in Silicon Valley, and she’ll do anything to prove to her new backing company—and the world—that the app works. So it’s a huge shock when the app says her soul mate is Miller, her…
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HEART OF IRON & SOUL OF STARS BY ASHLEY POSTON // spoiler-free series review: an action-packed sci-fi Anastasia retelling i didn’t know i needed in my life
I didn’t know that I’d be bringing you this post today but I actually just could not come and yell about this series that I have devoured over the last few days. Really colour me surprised but it was a great time and I want more people to read these gems! I read these back to back, hence this is a double review as my thoughts are sort of intermingled. But without further ado, let’s get into the review < 3 Title: Heart of Iron // Soul of StarsSeries: Heart of IronAuthor: Ashley PostonPage count: 467 // 400Date published: 27 February 2018 // 23 July 2019Genre: YA sci-fi 💫 Book One Synopsis: Seventeen-year-old Ana is a scoundrel by nurture and an outlaw by nature. Found as a child drifting through space with a sentient android called D09, Ana was saved by a fearsome space captain and the grizzled crew she now calls family. But D09—one of the last remaining illegal Metals—has been glitching, and Ana will stop at nothing to find a way to fix him. Ana’s desperate effort to save D09 leads her on a quest to steal the coordinates to a lost ship that could offer all…
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ONE OF US IS LYING SEASON 1 & 2 // spoiler-free tv show review: a perfect teen mystery you will binge in two days ft. drama, cute romance and all the fun
This post has been in the drafts for far too long so thank the heavens I’m actually getting around to it. I honestly do not remember how to post film reviews even though I’m a film major. I choose to ignore that detail. Anyways, I’m going to shoot my shot here because I really want to yell about this show. I have absolutely no idea what I’m doing but giving it my best folks, just bear with me. Quick disclaimer: this is mostly going to be about season two because it’s been a hot second since I watched the first season. And I don’t plan on spoiling any major plot points, I’m not an awful person about to ruin your fun. Let’s get into it! CASTING & CHARACTERS I literally have one complaint about this show and it’s that some of these actors look like they’re 30. Nothing against them because their performances are great but I struggle to picture them as teens #sorrynotsorry. Casting is accurate and inaccurate at the same time and I don’t know what to think. Aside from that, they all did a great job and what I love is that the cast feels so connected…
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ALEX, APPROXIMATELY BY JENN BENNETT // spoiler-free book review: my new fave ya contemporary ft. all the summery beach vibes & stunning enemies to lovers romance
Eeep I’m finally caught up on old reviews so now I can yell about books I’ve read fairly recently. Are you proud of me? Because I am. This book means a whole lot to me and I’m very mad at myself for taking so long to read it. But it was absolutely everything and I need to shove it down all of your throats. Yup, you have no choice. Let’s get into the squealing <3<3<3 Title: Alex, ApproximatelyAuthor: Jenn BennettPage count: 392Date published: 4 April 2017Genre: Young Adult contemporary romance ☀️ Synopsis: Classic movie buff Bailey “Mink” Rydell has spent months crushing on a witty film geek she only knows online by “Alex.” Two coasts separate the teens until Bailey moves in with her dad, who lives in the same California surfing town as her online crush. Faced with doubts (what if he’s a creep in real life—or worse?), Bailey doesn’t tell Alex she’s moved to his hometown. Or that she’s landed a job at the local tourist-trap museum. Or that she’s being heckled daily by the irritatingly hot museum security guard, Porter Roth—a.k.a. her new arch-nemesis. But life is whole lot messier than the movies, especially when Bailey discovers…
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TODAY TONIGHT TOMORROW BY RACHEL LYNN SOLOMON // spoiler-free book review: a YA contemporary adventure ft. witty writing & swoon-worthy academic rivals to lovers
Truly didn’t expect this but colour me surprised by how much I adored this book and I love it here <3<3<3 Picked this book up on a total whim, not thinking much would come from it as I didn’t love an adult romance from this author, but as you can probably guess, I adored it and am here to hype it up even more. I’m a hopeless romantic, I can’t help myself. Into the heart eyes review! Title: Today Tonight TomorrowAuthor: Rachel Lynn SolomonPage count: 364Date published: 14 July 2020Genre: Young Adult contemporary romance ✎ Synopsis: Today, she hates him. It’s the last day of senior year. Rowan Roth and Neil McNair have been bitter rivals for all of high school, clashing on test scores, student council elections, and even gym class pull-up contests. While Rowan, who secretly wants to write romance novels, is anxious about the future, she’d love to beat her infuriating nemesis one last time. Tonight, she puts up with him. When Neil is named valedictorian, Rowan has only one chance at victory: Howl, a senior class game that takes them all over Seattle, a farewell tour of the city she loves. But after learning a group…