Dash & Lily's Book of Dares

Dash & Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I had a weird love/hate/like relationship with this book.
It started off where I was literally laughing out loud in public reading it ... & then near half way through, it just seemed to take a drawn out turn that just felt like it was full of long words, weird characters & just things to fill up pages. ... but the last 2 or 3 chapters, especially the ending pulled me back to where I didn't close it with a thump saying how much I hated it. It saved me to bump it back up to an "ok" book.
It did make me laugh... I did like some of the characters... hated others ... & then was just meh about a lot of the side stories.
I know these are the same people that wrote Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist & now I'm afraid to read that one....

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“I’ve left some clues for you.
If you want them, turn the page.
If you don’t, put the book back on the shelf, please.”

So begins the latest whirlwind romance from the bestselling authors of Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist. Lily has left a red notebook full of challenges on a favorite bookstore shelf, waiting for just the right guy to come along and accept its dares. But is Dash that right guy? Or are Dash and Lily only destined to trade dares, dreams, and desires in the notebook they pass back and forth at locations across New York? Could their in-person selves possibly connect as well as their notebook versions? Or will they be a comic mismatch of disastrous proportions?

Rachel Cohn and David Levithan have written a love story that will have readers perusing bookstore shelves, looking and longing for a love (and a red notebook) of their own

Dumplin

Dumplin' by Julie Murphy
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I just adored this book.
Maybe because I feel like Willowdean could be when I was a teenager.
A girl that is the 'heavier' girl in school, the one with the cute friend, the one who is insecure but still has some sass to her... & of course, a girl that loves Dolly Parton.
I honestly need this to be a movie - & FAST.
I loved that even at my age, it was great to see a group of girls stand up for what they believe in & take a risk, creating new friendships & seeing that believing & loving yourself is what matters. A universal message for any age.

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Self-proclaimed fat girl Willowdean Dickson (dubbed “Dumplin’” by her former beauty queen mom) has always been at home in her own skin. Her thoughts on having the ultimate bikini body? Put a bikini on your body. With her all-American beauty best friend, Ellen, by her side, things have always worked…until Will takes a job at Harpy’s, the local fast-food joint. There she meets Private School Bo, a hot former jock. Will isn’t surprised to find herself attracted to Bo. But she is surprised when he seems to like her back.

Instead of finding new heights of self-assurance in her relationship with Bo, Will starts to doubt herself. So she sets out to take back her confidence by doing the most horrifying thing she can imagine: entering the Miss Clover City beauty pageant—along with several other unlikely candidates—to show the world that she deserves to be up there as much as any twiggy girl does. Along the way, she’ll shock the hell out of Clover City—and maybe herself most of all.

With starry Texas nights, red candy suckers, Dolly Parton songs, and a wildly unforgettable heroine—Dumplin’ is guaranteed to steal your heart.

The Castaways

The Castaways by Elin Hilderbrand
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

My 2nd Elin Hilderbrand book & I think I'm hooked.
Loved the story of 4 groups of friends & what happens after one couple is killed in a horrible boating accident.
The aftermath of so many truths comes out & reveals so much about the relationships of the group, The Castaways.
Because there were so many people, I legit had an index of names & arrows connecting who to who & what to what... it could get a little confusing at the beginning...
I enjoyed the story though - anxious to see how the friendships would survive this loss.

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Greg and Tess MacAvoy are one of four prominent Nantucket couples who count each other as best friends. As pillars of their close-knit community, the MacAvoys, Kapenashes, Drakes, and Wheelers are important to their friends and neighbors, and especially to each other. But just before the beginning of another idyllic summer, Greg and Tess are killed when their boat capsizes during an anniversary sail. As the warm weather approaches and the island mourns their loss, nothing can prepare the MacAvoy's closest friends for what will be revealed.

Once again, Hilderbrand masterfully weaves an intense tale of love and loyalty set against the backdrop of endless summer island life