This will solve all your X-men cravings - plus romance and a great heroine to root for! I really enjoyed this and will be reading the next in the series!

YA MINI REVIEWS 4
APRIL 28, 2020 LEAVE A COMMENT
I received this book for free from Library, Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Diamond Boy by Michael Williams
on December 2, 2014
Genres: Young Adult Fiction, Action & Adventure, Survival Stories, Boys & Men, Family, Social Themes, Homelessness & Poverty, People & Places, Africa
Pages: 400
Format: Hardcover, eARC
Source: Library, Publisher
Buy on Amazon
ISBN: 9780316320665
Goodreads
three-stars
My father says that a journey should always change your life in some way. Well, when you have nothing, I suppose a journey promises everything."Diamonds for everyone." That's what fifteen-year-old Patson Moyo hears when his family arrives in the Marange diamond fields. Soon Patson is working in the mines along with four friends, pooling their profits for a chance at a better life. Each of them hopes to find a girazi, a priceless stone that could change their circumstances forever. But when the government's soldiers come to Marange, Patson's world is shattered. Set against the backdrop of Zimbabwe's brutal recent history, Diamond Boy is the story of a young man who succumbs to greed but finds his way out through a transformative journey to South Africa in search of his missing sister, in search of freedom, and in search of himself.A high-stakes, harrowing adventure in the blood-diamond fields of southern Africa, from the critically acclaimed author of Now Is the Time for Running.

It’s interesting reading a 2014 published book in 2020. You would think not much has changed in six years, but wow I think there has been a mindset shift. Diamond Boy by Michael Williams really does illustrate, at least to me, how much I’ve learned and grown as a discerning reader since 2016. This book is about a teenage Zimbabwean boy named Patson. He moves from his home to a diamond mining town in hopes of a better life with his family. It’s written by a white man. And well, I just don’t know that this was an appropriate person to tell the story. To clarify, I believe that there’s so much value to books that are own voices and knowing what I do know about the seats available at the publishing table, I had that in the back of my mind while reading.

So, Diamond Boy is almost like Blood Diamond in book form for young adults. Patson’s father was a school teacher and believes he is moving his family to obtain a new teaching job by the diamond mine with government housing. The diamond mine is owned by Patson’s stepmother’s brother. As it turns out though, nothing is as the family had expected. So, Patson and his father work the mine in hopes of finding a perfect diamond and their way out of poverty. Unfortunately, the government and army steps in. Things go haywire. There’s tragedy. There are very serious stakes involved.

This book provides an exploration of what life is like working on the diamond mines. In addition, we learn about what life is like under Mugabe. To be honest, I am not motivated to look up if Mugabe is still involved in the Zimbabwean government. In the afterword written in 2014, he was. We learn about the impact of inflation. Also, there’s information on the impact of HIV and AIDS. I think that this book does an okay job of talking about how hard life can be when in poverty. It also is a very quick read. If you do pick this up, just do it with the caveat in mind that it is absolutely not an own voices book. You might gain more insight on diamond mine life, but not the insight that comes with an own voices book.


I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Snapshot by Angie Stanton
Series: The Jamieson Collection #2
Published by Harper Collins on September 24, 2013
Genres: Young Adult Fiction, Romance, Social Themes, Dating & Sex, Performing Arts, Music
Pages: 416
Format: ARC, eARC
Source: Publisher
Buy on Amazon
ISBN: 9780062272577
Goodreads
two-stars
One kiss will change Marti's summer . . . forever.
Marti
Marti just wants a normal life. After dealing with her irresponsible rock-legend father and absentee mother, she only wants some peace . . . and fun. And that includes a summer at an exclusive arts camp.
Adam
For Adam, a normal life is not possible—not when he is the lead guitarist in a rock band with his brothers. So he's thrilled to finally have an opportunity to disguise himself and live like a normal teenager at summer camp.
And when Adam meets Marti, sparks fly. Between romantic bonfires and stolen kisses, they are inseparable.
Then Marti discovers who Adam truly is, and her world is turned upside down. Ever since her father nearly ruined her life, she vowed never to fall for a rocker. But when tragedy strikes, Marti is forced to look within. And she discovers that maybe falling in love with a rock star is not so crazy after all.

I guess sometimes I just get the urge to read books that have been on my shelf for over five years. Snapshot by Angie Stanton has basically been collecting dust for seven years, but during this whole COVID19 pandemic, I wanted to read something that would take me back to a simpler time. This read, much like Rock And A Hard Place was absolutely OKAY. Not the best but certainly nothing that I would actively dislike or try to put anyone off reading.

Snapshot follows Marti who is the daughter of a famous rocker and one his groupies. She lives with her grandmother who is grounded and down to earth and wonderful. Marti is about to attend this renowned arts camp and really hone in on her photography skills. Marti could not be more excited if she tried. Adam is the youngest Jamieson brother, member of the boy band. He takes two weeks off to go to the same camp as Marti. However, to escape recognition, he shaves his hair off. Marti and Adam of course are very attracted to each other, until Marti learns Adam’s identity. Tragedy strikes and of course, the plot just goes right from there.

Okay, so I have to at least give it to this book for keeping my attention rapt. Let me tell you, there’s so much ridiculous. I was like, wait what – no, this is TOO MUCH. But I couldn’t just stop reading and set the book aside. In a weird way, I liked both Marti and Adam. They’re good kids who have intense feelings. I would have liked a deeper exploration of the events instead of bouncing from one twist and turn to the next, but it is what it is. Reluctant readers would like Snapshot because honestly, there’s not a dull moment in this book. It just was a little over the top for my old self.


I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

YA Mini Reviews 4The Seers by Julianna Scott
Published by Strange Chemistry on 2014
Genres: Young Adult, Mysteries & Detective Stories, Fantasy & Magic
Pages: 382
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
ISBN: 9781908844460
Goodreads
four-stars
After nearly being drained of her ability and betrayed by a man her father trusted, Becca Ingle was left with one clue -- Ciaran Shea. He holds the key to the downfall of the power-mad Holder, Darragh, and can ensure the safety of both Holder and Human kind alike... but is he willing to help?
Becca, Alex, Jocelyn, and Cormac set out Adare Manor to meet with the Bhunaidh, an aristocratic group of pure blooded Holders of whom Ciaran is a rumored member. However, when Becca discovers that they might not be the only ones after the information Ciaran has, everyone begins to wonder if Bhunaidh might not be as uninvolved with Darragh as they claim.
A race to uncover Ciaran's secrets begins, where the line between friend and foe is blurred, and everyone seems to have their own agenda. Becca will have to call on every ability at her disposal to uncover the truth, all the while knowing that sometimes the answer is more dangerous than the question.

I think that it is unfortunate that Strange Chemistry folded. The few books I read that they published were quite captivating, even if the covers were awful. In December 2012, I read The Holders by Julianna Scott. I then was somehow sent the sequel, The Seers via Netgalley and so it has sat on my to be read queue for 8 years. Finally though, during the pandemic, I decided to get through my queue and rip through my backlist. As of the last weekend in April, The Seers was the oldest need to be reviewed Netgalley book I had. So, I felt the pressure to finally read it.

As it turns out, I probably could have wrote one of those this isn’t my taste anymore reviews and been fine – particularly as the publisher is no more and you can’t just buy The Seers on Kindle. BUT, I just felt this obligation to read -probably because when I look back, I liked The Holders so much. And yes, tastes evolve, but you never know. So – as it turns out – I ripped through The Seers by Julianna Scott this time around, reading it in under 24 hours. I didn’t even re-read the first book for context. I couldn’t because it’s not available. Still, I was able to follow along with the adventure and feel like I competently understood everything going on.

Main character Becca begins the book getting fitted for a fancy dress. She’s about to go to this gala event with her father Jocelyn and meet more people who are just like her. Along for the ride are Cormac and Becca’s partner, Alex. At the gala, they discover the man they wanted to obtain information from is dead. And so, it’s a race to find the man’s notebook of his visions and to read those visions before bad guy Darragh can.

Overall, this was really compelling. It was an interesting storyline. I didn’t find myself bored or attention wandering. Becca is really a kind character and I appreciated that. There are some hallmarks of how life has changed since 2012 for sure. One of the characters is a mean girl who is referred to with some choice words. The book ends on a bit of a cliffhanger and it looks like we won’t ever get a third book – unless maybe the author self publishes or sells to another publisher, and that is quite a shame.

It was with deep regret that I had to DNF this one after reading the first few chapters. The story just didn't really grab at my attention.

Since receiving this book, my interests have changed therefore I will not be reading or reviewing this title. Thank you.