Amy and Roger´s Epic Detour by Morgan Matson
When I first moved to my small city called Mission in Texas (3 to 4 hours away from San Antonio), I had a very hard time finding books to enjoy. I don't know if it was because I was still feeling uneasy living in a new place, the Barnes and Nobles I was going to wasn´t my type or if I was just simply being grumpy and not wanting new stories to read. But I still tried reading books (very slowly) and I actually tried really hard to find something I could make me want to absorb the story. Clearly, trying to like a book wasn´t enough since I read like three books straight without liking them at all! But when I came across this book, I was really happy and I really enjoyed it, which seemed like a miracle in my life at the moment.
The story is about Amy, whom we can see as a teenager that is crazy for musicals, and that little detail about her makes her adorable and cute because she holds onto something tightly, just like Katy from Obsidian does with her beautiful books; but after some tragic events with her family, her mother decided to move to Connecticut and her only way to do so is by going on a road trip with Roger, a childhood "friend". Amy is against this idea, but her mother insists and Amy doesn´t want to bother her since Amy is aware that her mother may be more stressed than her, so she goes along with the plan, but the only problem seems to be that Roger is extremely cute with light brown hair and dark eyes. Amy´s mother has made them a route that they should take, but after talking in the car, they realize that taking a small detour might make the trip more enjoyable and fun for both of them. So, they take a turn and change their summers and their lives forever.
The very first thing that I would like to comment on is the trip that the characters go through, which the author actually lived following the same route and going to all those different places. Every place that Amy and Roger went was full of surprises and fun, and believe it or not, the excitement that I was able to feel chapter after chapter was primarily based on the places that they visited because they never tried the basic touristic places that we can expect about every trip. Their trip was more based on driving until finding a discovery and laughing about it. I believe that the key to this story was the uncertainty and that was one of the things that this book actually taught me. Uncertainty can lead to the greatest discoveries, especially when you are surrounding yourself in a world full of unknown things because you will probably laugh it off the next days.
The characters were just so fun to be around because they were not only the typical teenagers that we find in every summer beach read, they were one of the funniest characters to read, yet they felt extremely real at some points during the novel, not only because of the problems they were facing, but because of the way they acted around each other. Amy was always feeling embarrassed and doing silly things around Roger that could happen to any of us and those moments made me laugh so much!
I liked Roger´s character more than Amy´s because he felt like a more normal guy, especially since authors always try to put the male leads as the perfect guy any girl could wish for, but Roger just seemed normal like a person that valued small acts of kindness from Amy, like the times she would give him his glasses or try to talk to him when he was driving.
Also, I loved the way the story was crafted along the pages because things happened like in normal life, first you start noticing small things, like how Roger only drinks root beer, then you just start getting along with it and realizing that it is part of him and after some time, that small piece of information probably links to him. I found this small details and things that the author decided to put extremely cute because it showed not only how close they were starting to become, but also how much time it had passed in the story.
On the other hand, I would like to mention how much I loved the pictures that were included in the book. From time to time you would find receipts, drawings, menus, pamphlets, photographs and even emails. Seeing all of these things brought me so much happiness by simply seeing them! Also, it made me feel better realizing how much effort the author put into this story because seeing all these items made me feel part of the story.
Despite all of the excitement this book brought me, there were still parts of the story that did make me feel out place, like the way Callie was mentioned, or the fact that Amy never did anything for Julia, or the way that the ending was set. There were many holes in the story that I noticed at the end of the book, but it was still a very enjoyable read that I appreciated.
Overall, I would like to mention how this book made me read other novels from the author and love her writing!
This was a great story to see the different states we have in our country and have a fun summer read that many would enjoy!
4 1/2 out of 5 stars
Love, Sua.
Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout
This is the second time that I´ve read this series and I honestly can´t get enough of these aliens!
I read the Lux series in Spanish since I bought them while I was still living there, which was only like two years ago, so I am not sure how if the story has any changes that were made when they were translating them.
On the other hand, I would like to mention how frustrating it can be trying to get a whole series in Mexico because most books in Spanish are first translated in Spain, where they have a different vocabulary, therefore, once the book is published in Spain, they bring the books to Mexico and translate them or just sell them, but it still takes like six months since most book publishers decide to print their books in Mexico. Also, it is sometimes unknown how long it might take the books to get translated. So, I believe collecting my Lux series actually took me like a year.
Well, after finally collecting my series, I immediately began to read about this big and messy universe about aliens and special powers, but mostly about the hot alien neighbor that I still love.
In the story, we meet Katy, a typical teenager that moves to West Virginia with her mother after a family problem, but the first thing that her mother mentions to her is that there are two teenagers that could help her during her senior year at her new high school. So, Katy, following her mother´s advice, decides to go next door and ask for directions to the closest store, yet when the door opens and a tall guy with breathtaking green eyes greets her, Katy is left speechless.
Although Daemon sounds extremely hot and swoony, all fantasies that could be ever made are shattered once he opens his mouth. He´s a complete jerk. And soon, Katy is having discussions with her hot neighbor, which will soon lead to a roller coaster of emotions.
First of all, I would like to take the time to talk about how amazing Katy seemed like the main character. I could really see myself in her, not only because we shared an unconditional love for books, swoony characters, completely crazy plots and Daemon, but her character seemed logical and absolutely brave in a more real way, where every move she made seemed very natural. Also, I believe that the way Katy was shaped helped a lot the way the story was seen, not only because we were seeing the story from her eyes, but because the whole topic of aliens and weird connections between a mundane and an alien were taken to the level where it could be seen and fantasized as real and something that could be closer to us than we expected.
Daemon was a great character as well; he has amazing alien powers to move things and fight against the evil, he´s something incredible, has great looks and has a dirty mouth, which basically creates the perfect man that every reader loves. But the characteristic that makes him the most special is the way he tries controlling his world while trying to protect other people like Katy and Dee from the world that could break them, even though that means that he will have to fight against things that could hurt him anyways. Also, the way he can control his doubts and fears makes him one of the strongest male characters that I have encountered.
Dee is another character that I would love to add throughout this review because she is basically the description of a muffin because she´s soft and super sweet, she is the best friend that everyone would want to have next to them 24/7. But my favorite part of her is that although she is nice and sweet, she is still sensitive, which makes her very real because we can actually see her ups and downs.
Other characters, such as Andrew, Adam, and Ash are all characters that really balanced the story because some of them are harsher than others and some of them are more human-like. This really created a story where we could see that aliens have different personalities and thoughts like a complex human society.
On the other hand, I would like to mention the plot and the writing of the story (although I read it in Spanish and that could change my PoV). The plot may seem very simple and maybe a little vague considering only the synopsis, but I can guarantee that it is in fact, a very complex story, where we can notice different emotions along the way. Also, I loved the way the author mixed hot aliens, chaotic senior year and a fresh start because it was amazing!
The Lux series is a perfect series to read during summer break with its five books and fun plot twists with hot aliens.
*I can't wait to read the Covenant series by the same author, which are the books that I will be reading next month during a Pre-College program at Harvard.*
5 out of 5 stars
Love, Sua.
Welcome to Love, Sua Reviews!
My name is Sua and I enjoy reading, therefore, I thought that creating a book blog would help me share my thoughts about books with other people since I can´t find people that understand my interests.
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Love, Sua.
