Review: Once and for All by Sarah Dessen

Summary/Cover Image from Publisher's Website: 

From Sarah Dessen, the beloved New York Times bestselling author of SAINT ANYTHING and JUST LISTEN, comes a new novel set in the world of wedding planning!

Is it really better to have loved and lost? Louna’s summer job is to help brides plan their perfect day, even though she stopped believing in happily-ever-after when her first love ended tragically. But charming girl-magnet Ambrose isn’t about to be discouraged now that he’s met the one he really wants. Maybe Louna’s second chance is standing right in front of her.

Sarah Dessen’s many fans will adore this latest novel, a richly satisfying, enormously entertaining story with humor, romance, and an ending that is so much more than happily-ever-after. 

Review:
It's no secret that I love Sarah Dessen books. I've read just about all of them twice, and a few of them are among my favorite books ever. (If you haven't read Just Listen, The Truth About Forever, or This Lullaby yet, you're missing out big time!) Therefore, when I heard she had a new book coming out, I was beyond excited. I couldn't wait to dive into another Dessen contemporary, and I was eager to get my hands on a copy of this come release week. Luckily, Once and for All was everything I hoped it would be and much, much more. Romantic, witty, and featuring characters you can't help but love, Once and for All remind me all the reasons why I fell in love with Sarah Dessen's storytelling in the first place.

Louna's life revolves around weddings thanks to her mom's successful and famous wedding planning business. Louna's seen just about everything when it comes to executing the perfect wedding: the planning, the tears, the break downs, and the occasional drunken rants at the reception. But the picture perfect happily ever after endings with your true love? Louna's not sure if those truly exist, especially after the heartbreak she's experienced. The summer after her senior year of high school, Louna is expecting another ordinary summer: helping her mom at the family business, hanging out with her best friend whilst dodging her desire to be Louna's matchmaker, and preparing for college. Everything changes, however, the moment she's forced to drag Ambrose, an AWOL wedding participant, back to his mother's wedding. Ambrose is everything she tries to avoid in a guy: eccentric, romance driven, and wandering. There's something about Ambrose, though, that Louna likes, no matter how much she pushes it down, and that only becomes more blatant when he ends up working with her. Faced with a summer of possible romance, bets, adventures, and healing, this summer wedding season may be the most chaotic, life changing one yet.

Sarah Dessen books are always character driven, and Once and for All is no different. Louna was a character I instantly liked from the get-go. When the reader is first introduced to her, it's easy to see Louna is lost, no matter how much she tries to push it down. I was instantly intrigued. I wanted to know why she felt lost, and I also wanted her to experience healing. Even with being lost, Louna was a strong, charming, and easily relatable main character. I enjoyed her observations about as well as interactions revolving weddings, her family and friends, Ambrose. All the relationship and experiences she had added depth not only to her character but to the overall plot of the novel as well. Ambrose, though, was the real show stealer in this one. He was the classic Dessen boy protagonist, and that couldn't have made me more happy. I loved every scene that involved him, his behavior while a little obnoxious at first was humorous and with good intentions. His relationship with Louna was one of my favorite parts of the book. It was easy to see how much he cared about her, and how deeply he wanted her to come out of her shell and truly experience living again. 

The plot of this book was also interesting, and kept me committed the whole way through. As mentioned above, I loved the wedding planning aspect of this book. (Side note: why aren't there more books about wedding planning? It has a lot of potential to be a fun, dramatic atmosphere!) The various weddings the business planned throughout the summer were something I enjoyed seeing. It was always fun to see the different quirks that come with each as well as the character building it brought with it. As mentioned before, the romance in this was also a high point for me. It was a consistent will-they-or-won't-they, and there was a little suspense for me in those last few pages if everything would end the way I wanted it. 

Dessen's writing in this was also good. I thought she did a great job of developing the characters and plot while also bringing them into the Sarah Dessen book world she's created throughout her intertwined books. The part of this book, though, that brought it down a notch in my eyes was the shooting subplot. It was an interesting, don't get me wrong, and it served a large purpose in the book and its story. However, it felt a little awkwardly placed at times. 

In all, Once and for All is the ultimate summer read. Full of quirk, romance, and a charming little dog, Once and for All is sure to land on the top of many reader's summer readings lists! 

Grade: A-

*That little Along for the Ride egg in the middle? Perfectly placed!*

Once and for All (Amazon, Goodreads, Barnes and Noble) is now out!

Source: Library 

Review: The Moon and More by Sarah Dessen

Summary/Cover Image from Publisher's Website:

Luke is the perfect boyfriend: handsome, kind, fun. He and Emaline have been together all through high school in Colby, the beach town where they both grew up. But now, in the summer before college, Emaline wonders if perfect is good enough.

Enter Theo, a super-ambitious outsider, a New Yorker assisting on a documentary film about a reclusive local artist. Theo's sophisticated, exciting, and, best of all, he thinks Emaline is much too smart for Colby.

Emaline's mostly-absentee father, too, thinks Emaline should have a bigger life, and he's convinced that an Ivy League education is the only route to realizing her potential. Emaline is attracted to the bright future that Theo and her father promise. But she also clings to the deep roots of her loving mother, stepfather, and sisters. Can she ignore the pull of the happily familiar world of Colby?

Emaline wants the moon and more, but how can she balance where she comes from with where she's going?

Sarah Dessen's devoted fans will welcome this story of romance, yearning, and, finally, empowerment. It could only happen in the summer.

Review:  

To start with, I'm a huge fan of Sarah Dessen. Ever since I read Just Listen, she's been my YA idol, and that's only increased with every book of hers I've read. Therefore, when I was received a copy of The Moon and More for review, I was BEYOND excited! I'm pretty sure I even squealed out loud a little bit. As it turns out, I had every reason to be excited because The Moon and More was classic Sarah Dessen: beautifully written and full of realistic and charming main characters that any girl can relate to in some way.

The Moon and More begins the story of Emaline, a girl who lives in a beach town where nothing ever seems to be permanent. She's content with this though. She has loving parents, best friends who she can count on , and the one of the nicest boyfriends around. Sure, she has some problems involving her real dad and dealing with the change of going from high school to college, but it's nothing too major. However, everything changes when Theo, a new city boy arrives in town. Theo starts to challenge all the notions Colby has about herself and her town. This is only made worse when her father suddenly show up out of the blue. What's about to happen will change Colby's life but will she loose herself in the process? You'll have to read it to find out!

One of my favorite things about books by Sarah Dessen are the characters, and this rang especially true with The Moon and More. From the first page, I adored Emaline. She was smart and funny. Best of all, I found it easy to relate to her. I could understand her frustration of living in a small town (been there and still there) and more importantly, a lot of thoughts she was having about college and the next chapter of her life are thoughts that I'm currently having as a senior in high school. It's a crazy time in life- as anyone knows- and Sarah Dessen really manged to do an amazing job of portraying the excitement, fear, and worry that comes with it. I also enjoyed seeing the variety of other people involved in Emaline's life. I adored her best friends, Mason and Daisy. Daisy managed to bring some spunk and lightness to the book as did Mason. Better yet, they were also characters I came to relate to and root for. I also loved Emaline's crazy family, but I'll get to more about this later on.

Another aspect of this book I enjoyed was the beach setting. Sarah always does such an awesome job of portraying Colby in her books, so I loved being back there for this one. With every page, I could perfectly imagine the beach houses and the ocean as well as the hot temps, and as a Northeastern currently dealing with a brutal PA winter, this was a wonderful change of scenery.

Next up: the plot. The Moon and More has a lot to do with Emaline's feelings about the next chapter in her life-college- and what it means for her and her friends and family and life in general. Throughout the book and Emaline's summer, she goes through a lot of change, and it was always interesting to see where her decisions took her. It really kept the book moving along, and it added a lot to character development. One thing I especially enjoyed about the plot was seeing Emaline interact with her family. From her sisters to her mom to her dad to her father to her half brother, Emaline's relationships with each played a huge part in the book, and given that that kind of stuff isn't often seen in YAs, it was a welcomed change, in my opinion.

The only aspect of this book I wasn't too keen on was the romance part. In The Moon and More, Emaline gets herself involved in a love triangle. It was a love triangle that actually did a lot for the book, so I can't bash it there. Theo was the "city boy," and he was probably one of the most obnoxious characters ever. I couldn't stand how much he bashed Colby and its residents. Plus I always thought he was just a wee bit creepy with Emaline. Luke, Emaline's high school boyfriend, on the other hand, I did like quite a bit. He was kind and the prince charming type guy. However, where either of these boys reach the awesomeness of Owen (from Just Listen) or Dexter (from This Lullaby)? No, they were just kind of there, and to be fair, if I didn't have such a love for Dessen's early boys, I probably would have liked Luke a lot more (Theo not so much). It didn't work that way so I was craving for something better the whole way through, and even when everything was said and done, I was like "really, that's all?!!"

Regardless, The Moon and More is still an emotional and well written coming of age, one that any fan of Sarah's will just love- especially if they too will soon be making their way to college.

Grade: A-

The Moon and More (Amazon, BN, Goodreads) will be released June 4, 2013!

Source: Publisher via Netgalley

Summer of Sarah: This Lullaby (+ Contest)

This summer Sarah-land, Sarah Dessen's social networking site, is hoping to better connect readers to her, generate discussion and interest in her backlist titles, and help her fans with the anticipation of  her next title in 2011, What Happened to Goodbye, by launching Summer of Sarah, a nine week long event.

This week's book is This Lullaby, one of my favorite Dessen books, and to celebrate this not only will I be giving away a copy of it here, but on Sarah-Land there will be trivia questions and quotes specific to This Lullaby for a chance to win a signed copy of the novel. (Sarah-Land also has additional chances to win Lock & Key necklaces in challenges throughout the summer!)

Though, before we get to that, here's Sarah talking about This Lullaby (source: http://www.sarahdessen.com/this-lullaby):

Raised by a mother who's had five husbands, eighteen-year-old Remy believes in short-term, no-commitment relationships until she meets Dexter, a rock band musician.

Okay. So that, in one sentence, is how my publisher sums up This Lullaby, my new novel. It’s funny how someone else is so able to do that. Whenever anyone asks me what any of my books are about I find myself fumbling and mumbling like an idiot before delivering some really long boring explanation that always begins with “Well, it’s about this girl….”. The above sentence is much, much better. Trust me.

There are few things I can tell you about this book. First, I think it’s different from the others. Most of my other narrators are quieter, more introspective types: they hang back watching everything, processing it, and reporting on the drama of their showier, more outgoing friends. (Think Casey in That Summer, Rina in Dreamland, Isabel in Keeping the Moon, that kind of thing.) I was kind of struggling with my writing last winter and one of my friends, trying to help, said something about how maybe I should try something different. “You know,” she said, “you always have these dynamic friends in your books. Maybe you should write from that point of view, just for a change.”

I thought this was the stupidest thing I’d ever heard. God, I was NEVER the dynamic friend, I thought, I was a total wall-hugger, like I’d ever know how to do that. I was so annoyed, in fact, that I couldn’t stop thinking about this, and within a few weeks I had something. Just a little germ of an idea, but it was more than I’d been able to come up with in a while. So I sat down, tossed up one of those Oh Well looks that always precedes a novel, and out came Remy. Just like that, I could see her. Hear her. She was kind of bitchy, kind of cold, and was sure she had everything figured out. I couldn’t wait to see her proved wrong.

This Lullaby is also, essentially, a love story. And while I’ve had subplots about relationships and their ups and downs in other books, in this one I really wanted to see if I could take love, and all the crap that goes along with it, and make it the center. Plus it’s a summer book: set in that wonderful stretch from June to August when it just seems like everything is possible. Dreamland, my last book, had been so heavy, so emotional. I was ready for something a little lighter, but that still had something to say.

Basically, this is a story about faith. Faith in love (bear with me here) and just faith in general. Remy’s tragic flaw, of sorts, is that she’s afraid to take a chance on something she can’t guarantee. She wants hard proof, facts, a mathematical equation where X equals Y, before she’ll even begin to think about taking any kind of risk. But what she learns---what we all learn, eventually---is that the living is in the leaping. Sometimes, you just have to close your eyes, and jump.

So. There you have it. Five paragraphs to say what someone else can summarize in a single sentence. (But then again, I always overexplain. It’s my trademark.) What else can you expect in This Lullaby? Well. There’s some songs about potatoes. Diet Coke comes up quite a bit. And oh, yeah, a character from Someone Like You turns up to make a little cameo appearance, a thank you to everyone who has written to ask if I’d ever go back for a sequel. As for the rest, you’ll just have to read the book. And when you do, let me know what you think it’s about.

I’ll be waiting.

And once again, if you are a Sarah Dessen fan be sure to check out Sarah-land! It really is an awesome website, plus it's having a bunch of really great challenges and contests this summer. You can click below to join or look around.


Visit Sarah-land

*For any Twitter mentions the hash is #sarahland *

Also, here's a summery type video with Sarah giving us all a tour of Emerald Isle, the town where she based Along for the Ride's setting on:



If you would like to win a copy of This Lullaby, please fill out the following form.

Also, as with any contest there are rules:

~ Must be 13 or older to enter.
~ Open to participants with an United States mailing address only. (international readers can enter if they have a friend in the States who can accept their prizes by mail)
~ Don't comment below to enter or you will not be entered!
~ This contest will close on July 26 with the winner being announced July 27 or 28.

(And don't forget to head over to Sarah-land as well for an extra chance to win!)

Waiting On Wednesday: Week 78

Waiting On Wednesday was started by Jill at Breaking The Spine.

My pick this week is:

Falling Under by Gwen Hayes

In her dreams he’s irresistible—seductive, charming, and undoubtedly dangerous. But when he appears to her when she’s awake—and captivates her just the same—she’s not sure which way is up and which is down.

Theia Alderson has always led a sheltered life, not allowed the same freedoms as the rest of the teenagers in the small California town of Serendipity Falls. But when a devastatingly handsome boy appears in the halls of her school, she feels every urge she’s ever denied burning through her at the slightest glance from Haden Black. Theia knows she’s seen Haden before—not around town, but in her dreams.

Theia doesn’t understand how she dreamed of Haden before they ever met, but every night has them joined in a haunting world of eerie fantasy. And as the Haden of both the night and the day beckons her forward one moment and pushes her away the next, the only thing Theia knows for sure is that the incredible pull she feels towards him is stronger than her fear. And as she slowly discovers what Haden truly is, Theia’s not sure if she wants to resist him, even if the cost is her soul. (from Author's website)
 
The cover of this is truly the definiton of a gem of a cover, in my opinion. Since it just screams "BUY ME! BUY ME!" before even reading the summary. Making this even better, the summary makes Falling Under seem like it'll be a gem of a book also. Overall I can't wait to read this one, so March of 2011, you better come fast. ;)
 
Also I wanted to make a little shot out WOW mention to Sarah Dessen's new upcoming novel Cut and Run, which would've been my Wow pick, because as frequent readers of this blog know I'm a huge Dessen fan, but it didn't have a cover nor official summery, so I went to the second best pick, Falling Under!
 
Though here's the snippet about it from PW, in cause you have no clue what I'm talking about.
 
Hayes Buys ‘Cut and Run’

Agent Leigh Feldman, of Darhansoff, Verrill, Feldman, sold a new YA novel by Sarah Dessen to Viking Children’s Books. Regina Hayes bought world rights to Cut and Run, about a high school senior who, after her parents’ divorce, has taken up the practice of assuming a new identity in each of the four towns she’s lived in. Dessen, according to Penguin, has sold more than four million copies of her nine previous titles, which include the New York Times bestsellers Along for the Ride and Lock & Key. Cut and Run is scheduled for May 2011.

Are you excited yet?!?!? Well, join the club. :)

Contest for Along For The Ride by Sarah Dessen

In celebration of Sarah Dessen's #1 New York Times debut for Along For The Ride, Penguin is donating a copy of it to be given away here on Lauren's Crammed Bookshelf!

First off, here's the summary:

It’s been so long since Auden slept at night. Ever since her parents’ divorce—or since the fighting started. Now she has the chance to spend a carefree summer with her dad and his new family in the charming beach town where they live.

A job in a clothes boutique introduces Auden to the world of girls: their talk, their friendship, their crushes. She missed out on all that, too busy being the perfect daughter to her demanding mother. Then she meets Eli, an intriguing loner and a fellow insomniac who becomes her guide to the nocturnal world of the town. Together they embark on parallel quests: for Auden, to experience the carefree teenage life she’s been denied; for Eli, to come to terms with the guilt he feels for the death of a friend.

In her signature pitch-perfect style, Sarah Dessen explores the hearts of two lonely people learning to connect.

Dosen't that sound great?

How To Enter:

Leave a comment on this post. Also, if you don't have a blogger profile be sure to leave an email address, too

For Extra Entries:

+4 for following/ subscribing to my blog
+2 for becoming a follower/ subscriber to my blog
+2 for commenting on my review for this.
+3 for posting a link to this contest somewhere on the Internet ( blog, Myspace, Twitter, ex.)
+1 for adding me to your blogroll

Ends:

July 15 at midnight Eastern time!

Good Luck!! Also, this is US only, sorry international readers.

Sidenote: If you would like to double your chances of winning, go over to Sarah Land ( the community for Sarah Dessen fans) where you can not only win a copy for yourself, but for a friend too!

Along For The Ride by Sarah Dessen

Summary:

It's been so long since Auden slept at night. Ever since her parents' divorce - or since the fighting started. Now she has the chance to spend a carefree summer with her dad and his new family in the charming beach town where they live.

A job in a clothes boutique introduces Auden to the world of girls: their talk, their friendship, their crushes. She missed out on all that, too busy being the perfect daughter to her demanding mother. Then she meets Eli, an intriguing loner and a fellow insomniac who becomes her guide to the nocturnal world of the town. Together they embark on parallel quests: for Auden, to experience the carefree teenage life she's been denied; for Eli, to come to terms with the guilt he feels for the death of a friend.

In her signature pitch-perfect style, Sarah Dessen explores the hearts of two lonely people learning to connect.

Review:

My love for Sarah Dessen books started innocently enough. It was my second or third time in the young adult section in my local library and I was in sixth grade. After looking around for a while I came upon a book called, This Lullaby by Sarah Dessen, it looked interesting enough and I simply loved the cover, so I decided to check it out. The next day I was nearly done with it and had found out who my new favorite author was. Now, switch back to current times, when I got the amazing chance to read an early copy of Along for the Ride. You could only guess how happy I was!

Along for the Ride is truly another Sarah Dessen classic. Since, in this she creates another set of memorable characters and a story that you hung on it's every word, cherishing it until it was over.

Auden was someone that I could relate to in her insomniac and overarching ways, though both are not nearly as bad, to her the feeling that her parents divorce was partly her fault. While she is not the strongest main character in a Dessen novel, she is still one that many girls will come to adore. Then, there was Eli, who was incredible. Defiantly one of my top three faves in top male leads in a Deseen book. I loved Auden and his journeys in the night since they always brought for a laugh or two.

The plot in this is basic and predictable, though with Sarah's writing she added a charm to it that not many others would be able to do. One of my favorite parts of this novel was about the different relationships you make in life: between friends, parents, siblings, ex. It was interesting to see how Auden dealt with them and let them grow.

One issue I want to address in this review is how some have said that this is basically a collaboration of some of her previous novels, though with new characters. Yes, some of the scenes and issues in Along for the Ride were a bit similar to previous novels such as This Lullabay and The Truth About Forever, but that happens with any type of novel. Since, most novels are mainly based on the same basics: relationships, first loves, friendships, ex.

Overall, Along for the Ride is one of my favorite Sarah Dessen novels so far! I deeply suggest you go pick this book up form your local book store come June 16!

Grade: A+

Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen will be released June 16, 2009.

*Much thanks goes to JL once again for this fantastic novel! :)

Wating on Wednesday(7)

My pick this week is:

Waiting for You by Susane Colasanti

How long can you wait for true love?

At the beginning of her sophomore year, Marisa is ready for a fresh start and, more importantly, a boyfriend.So when the handsome and popular Derek asks her out, Marisa thinks her long wait for happinessis over. But several bumps in the road—including her parents’ unexpected separation, a fight with her best friend, and a shocking disappointment in her relationship with Derek—test Marisa’s ability to maintain her new outlook. Only the anonymous DJ, whose underground podcasts have the school’s ear, seems to understand what Marisa is going through. But she has no idea who he is—or does she?

In this third romantic novel from Susane Colasanti, Marisa learns how to “be in the Now” and realizes that the love she’s been waiting for has been right in front of her all along.

My Thoughts:

I loved When it Happens by Susane, but I haven't read Take Me There yet. Though, I do own it. Waiting for You seems like it's going to be awesome. I can't wait until it's released on July 9.

By the way, doesn't it seem like something Sarah Dessen would write? To, me it sounds kind of like Just Listen in the way how the girl has a fallout with her best friend and how she kind of likes a guy who is a DJ and thinks this guy seems to understand her ( like Owen and Annabel!)