Alice in Zombieland by Gena Showalter
Release Date: October 1st 2012
Series: White Rabbit Chronicles #1
Publisher: HarlequinTEEN
Source: received from publisher for review purposes
Format: Paperback
Collins | Book Depository | Amazon
My Rating: 
Alice Bell has lived her entire life with her father telling her and her sister about the monsters that roam the night time. Her father has always obsessed about the monsters, never letting his daughters out at night from pure fear of them. Everyone thinks that he has lost the plot.
Ali's sister desperately wants to perform in a dance recital. The only problem? It's at night, and her father would never go for it. This is where Ali steps in. For her sister she would do anything. Ali's birthday is coming up and her parents constantly forget, not much changes this year. Ali convinces her mum that it's ok, if they go to the recital. Somehow her parents are convinced and they go. The recital is a great success but now it's night time, and the Bell's are out in the open.
Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry
Release Date: July 25th 2012
Pages: 376
Publisher: Harlequin Teen Australia
Source: Borrowed from a friend
Find it: Goodreads | Collins (AU) | Dymocks (AU) | Book Depository (INT) | Amazon (INT)
My Rating: 
From Goodreads: "No one knows what happened the night Echo Emerson went from popular girl with jock boyfriend to gossiped-about outsider with "freaky" scars on her arms. Even Echo can't remember the whole truth of that horrible night. All she knows is that she wants everything to go back to normal.But when Noah Hutchins, the smoking-hot, girl-using loner in the black leather jacket, explodes into her life with his tough attitude and surprising understanding, Echo's world shifts in ways she could never have imagined. They should have nothing in common. And with the secrets they both keep, being together is pretty much impossible.
Yet the crazy attraction between them refuses to go away. And Echo has to ask herself just how far they can push the limits and what she'll risk for the one guy who might teach her how to love again."
My first review of the New Year! HELLOOOOO everyone!!! :D I hope that you all had an absolutely fabulous Christmas and New Year. I have not had a whole lot of time for reading the last couple of weeks. I work in a bookstore and my hours for Christmas were a little crazy. But none the less I had a great holiday period. How was yours?
Speechless by Hannah Harrington
Release Date: September 2012
Publisher: HarlequinTeen
Source: Received from publisher
Quick Thoughts: Really enjoyed Speechless. A strong story about the consequences of gossiping and bullying
Rating: 4/5 stars
Thank you to the wonderful people at HarlequinTeen for supplying me with a review copy of Speechless. This does not alter my review in any way. All opinions expressed are my own.
This is the first book I have read of Hannah Harrington's, though I have been trying to get my hands on a copy of Saving June!
I want to stop here and look at the cover. It in its self sends is so powerful and thought provoking that I just couldn't wait to dive into this book.
Speechless is thought provoking young adult novel, about the consequences of gossiping and bullying. Teens these days are faced with these everyday, becoming victims of gossip and bullying. Hannah gives a powerful voice to those being bullied. As in the case with Speechless the topic of bullying is Homophobia. Hannah approaches this issue with great care and a well thought out plot line.
Chelsea, the school gossip, and main character, finds herself in a very awkward situation. Having walked in on a boy from her school making out with another boy at a party, she instantly runs downstairs to tell her friends what she saw. Something that Chelsea ordinarily wouldn't think twice about. However, as soon as the words leave her mouth and she see's the reaction of the 'popular' boys at the school she regrets ever opening her mouth.
Chelsea later finds out that the boy from her school has been hospitalised. He was walking home from the party that night and was attacked and brutaly beaten up, winding up in hospital.
The last thing Chelsea says is to the police, revealing who beat up the boy and why. This begins Chelsea's vow of silence. After being the school gossiper for so long, and having now realised what effect it can have, she no longer wants the words to come out of her mouth to cause something like this again.
Chelsea carries on with her school year, becoming shunned by nearly the entire school. Now finds she is being bullied herself. In the only class she has a chance of escaping from all of that is art. But on the first day back at school she realises that Noah's best friend, Sam is in the class with her, not only that, the only seat left is the one next to her. This is going to be a total train wreck. Or so she thinks. You guessed it. She meets a boy, Sam. But he's not just any boy, he's Noah's best friend. Yikes! She feels guilty as hell but finds that Sam
Speechless is a captivating story about a girl who was once a gossiper and bully herself, becoming the victim, allow with others in the story. Chelsea along the way tries to figure out who really matters, and how to be the type of person she doesn't hate and to just be happy. Through her journey of silence she makes new and unexpected friends and finds herself happier than she has ever been.
I really loved this book and I just chewed through it so fast. Speechless keeps a good pace, that kept me interested throughout. Chelsea really grows as a character through this book and props to Hannah Harrington for achieving this really effectively!! Love love loved!
So, have you read Speechless? What were your thoughts?
Happy reading!
- Amy
